PISTA BLOG#26 (Dec 2023):“FPSO PROJECTS TO WATCH: SIGNIFICANT PROJECTS OF 2024-2027”

 “FPSO PROJECTS TO WATCH: SIGNIFICANT PROJECTS OF 2024-2027”

“According to GlobalData’s recent report, the market for Floating Production, Storage, and Offloading (FPSO) vessels is expected to grow significantly over the next five years. There are 66 planned FPSO projects scheduled between 2022 and 2027. GlobalData Plc, a data analytics and consulting company headquartered in London, England, conducted this analysis.”

Notable FPSO Projects in 2024-2027

• P82, BRAZIL

• P71, BRAZIL

• ONE GUYANA, GUYANA

• BLACKRHINO/BLACKHAWK, SENEGAL

• GREATER TORTUE AHMEYIM FLNG, MAURITANIA AND SENEGAL

• PARQUE DE BALEIAS, BRAZIL

• ANITA GARIBALDI AND ANNA NERY, BRAZIL

         “In the earlier analysis, GlobalData observed that most of this growth occurred in the South American market, a trend that remains true today. While Brazil and Guyana continue to be key areas of focus, there is a global demand for new vessels. Leasing companies and shipyards are operating at near-maximum capacity, constructing larger FPSOs with substantial costs.”

In 2021, the worldwide market for FPSO (Floating Production Storage and Offloading) was nearly $21 billion. It’s projected to expand at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 5.83% in the coming years, with an estimated value of $29.5 billion by 2027.

Brazil’s Petroleo Brasileiro, also known as Petrobras, is paving the path in global FPSO (Floating Production Storage and Offloading) projects. Petrobras is spearheading Brazil’s market expansion with 12 FPSOs that are either planned or announced. The UK holds the second position globally with 5 FPSOs under development for the North Sea, while Guyana and Nigeria share the third spot with four FPSOs each.

On a global scale, South America is set to witness the most substantial growth in FPSO projects with 31 planned. Africa follows with 14 planned projects, and Asia with 10.

In this PISTA BLOG #26, we’ve spotlighted a few of the more significant or noteworthy projects which are in the pipeline or are about to see the light of the day soon in the coming years.  

P82 FPSO, BRAZIL

Petrobras, based in Brazil, has engaged Sembcorp Marine, a shipbuilder from Singapore, for the engineering, procurement, and construction of the P-82 FPSO vessel. The contract, worth US$3.05 billion, is the largest deal between Sembcorp Marine and Petrobras.

The P-82 is slated to be operational and delivered in the first half of 2026. It will have the capability to produce up to 225,000 barrels per day, store up to 1.6 million barrels, and process 12 million cubic meters of LNG daily.

Upon completion, the FPSO will be the largest and the tenth platform operating in the Búzios oil field, located in the pre-salt area of the Santos Basin off the coast of Brazil.

P71 FPSO, BRAZIL

Sembcorp Marine, has recently finished the construction of a large new FPSO vessel, which is set to be deployed in the Itaipu field for Petrobras in Brazil. The completed vessel, adapted for its role at Itaipu, had a construction cost exceeding $525 million.

The project, initially scheduled for 2023-24, was completed ahead of its timeline and has been producing oil since December 2022. It’s anticipated to produce up to 150,000 barrels of oil and 6 million cubic meters of natural gas per day for Petrobras. The vessel is expected to remain operational until 2050.

GlobalData’s recent report states that Mr T Guhan, the president of EJA, stated: “Despite the challenges related to the pandemic that impacted the project for over 20 months, EJA successfully delivered the P-71 FPSO on schedule. This accomplishment solidifies EJA’s position as a leading facility in Brazil, capable of handling comprehensive engineering, procurement, construction, and commissioning work for large-scale offshore projects.”

ONE GUYANA - PROSPERITY, GUYANA

SBM Offshore, a Dutch FPSO operator, has also announced that they have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with ExxonMobil Guyana for the construction of an FPSO for the Stabroek Block field off the coast of Guyana. This follows their current project, the ONE GUYANA FPSO, which costs $1.75 billion and is financed by a consortium of 15 international banks.

ExxonMobil and SBM have a longstanding partnership to provide FPSOs for their portfolio. The new vessel will be among at least six at the Stabroek Block, with a total production capacity exceeding 1 million barrels per day. This trend is expected to continue; since 2015, ExxonMobil has made over 30 discoveries on the block, including two in October 2022.

Furthermore, ExxonMobil is close to completing the Prosperity FPSO, which is also being constructed by SBM Offshore and will have a capacity of 220,000 barrels per day.

BLACKRHINO / BLACKHAWK / ASPITAL FPSOS, SENEGAL

The Sangomar reserves, which are among the world’s largest, span an area of 7,490 square kilometers off the coast of Senegal. The AUSTRALIAN COMPANY WOODSIDE currently manages these fields, with PETROSEN, the national oil company of Senegal, holding an 18% stake.

Senegal’s first offshore oil development is the Sangomar oil field, and the FPSOs for the projects will be supplied by MODEC, a Japanese FPSO builder.Woodside is already operating the FPSO Ocean BlackRhino, having finished a drilling campaign in September 2021 before the COVID-19 pandemic postponed the new projects. A second vessel, Ocean BlackHawk, is in operation in the Sangomar fields since 2023. The country aimed to commence gas production in 2023 with the aid of the first FPSOs and it is known already that Woodside has secured contracts to transform the crude oil carrier Aspital into a third FPSO, which will have the capacity to produce up to 225,000 barrels per day and 12 million cubic meters of gas daily.

GREATER TORTUE AHMEYIM FLNG, MAURITANIA AND SENEGAL

In a partnership between Texas-based Kosmos Energy and BP, the first phase of the construction of the FLNG project is now 88% complete, according to a recent quarterly results report. The project involves converting Golar’s LNG Gimi to a floating LNG producer at Keppel shipyard in Singapore before the FPSO is constructed in China at COSCO Shipping's Qidong yard.

The FLNG is scheduled for deployment in offshore Mauritania and Senegal in early 2023, with a projected capacity of 2.5 million tonnes per annum (mtpa).

PARQUE DAS BALEIAS, BRAZIL

Petrobras, has plans for another FPSO, named Parque das Baleias (Whale Park). This FPSO is set to be deployed off the coast of Espirito Santo at the oil fields that share its name.

Upon its deployment, the FPSO will operate in waters that are 1400m deep and is expected to process up to 100,000 barrels per day and 5 million cubic meters of natural gas daily. The project is on course to commence oil production by 2024. 

ANITA GARIBALDI AND ANNA NERY, BRAZIL

In October 2022, the Anita Garibaldi FPSO embarked from the Dalian Shipbuilding Industry Offshore (DSIC) shipyard in China for its deployment by Petrobras. It is set to operate in the Marlim and Voador fields in the Campos basin for the next four years as a part of Petrobras’s $16 billion Campos Basin Renewal Plan aimed at rejuvenating the area. It as been deployed since the third quarter of 2023, it is expected to produce up to 80,000 barrels per day from 43 wells.

In addition to the Anita Garibaldi, another FPSO, Anna Nery, is also part of a project to replace nine older platforms in the region. The Anna Nery has commenced production in the first quarter of 2023 and will be linked to 75 wells, with a projected output of more than 150,000 barrels per day.