Petrobras is preparing to launch a tender to build Brazil’s largest-ever oil platform. The company plans to launch the leasing tender for the floating platform, known as an FPSO, by the end of August.
Equivalent vessels for deepwater production have cost between $2.5 billion and $3 billion to build. Winners build and own the platforms, and lease them to Petrobras in contracts with daily rates of up to $1 million that often last longer than 15 years.
An FPSO is effectively a massive ship that is vital for deep water production in some offshore basins. It will be the seventh FPSO in Buzios, Brazil’s second most productive field and one of the biggest deepwater discoveries this century. Petrobras is considering a unit able to process 225,000 bpd, more than Brazil’s current largest platform, owned by Norway’s Equinor ASA in its Bacalhau field.
The request for bids shows the state-controlled producer is moving ahead with investment plans for its most prolific fields despite the recent contraction of crude prices. The competition for the FPSO is expected to take several months.
