Brazilian state-owned energy giant Petrobras has finished the anchoring activities for its new floating production, storage, and offloading (FPSO) vessel, which is said to be the biggest one off the coast of Brazil to date.
SBM Offshore got a binding letter of intent (LoI) for the FPSO Almirante Tamandaré in February 2021 and signed contracts with Petrobras for the 26.25-year lease and operation of the vessel in July 2021. After leaving a Chinese yard shortly after a naming ceremony , the FPSO arrived at its offshore destination in October 2024, kicking off installation, hookup, and offshore commissioning activities to achieve the first oil in early 2025.
The unit, which Øivind Tangen , SBM Offshore’s CEO, describes as the ”largest producing FPSO in Brazil” and “the first in Brazil with a Sustainability-1 Notation,” got its name as a tribute to Joaquim Marques Lisboa , Marquis of Tamandaré, who was a 19th-century military hero and admiral of Brazil’s Imperial Army.
Carlos Augusto Cardoso Lima , Petrobras’ Engineer of Subsea Equipment, underlined: “It is with great pride that we announce the completion of the anchoring of the FPSO Almirante Tamandaré, installed in the Búzios field.
“This is another historic milestone for SUB, consolidating the anchoring of our largest production platform! With a lot of determination and a highly committed team, we mobilized strategic resources to carry out the Hook Up of this giant, moving forward with the operations of the EPCI contract.” The FPSO is destined to work on the Petrobras -operated Búzios field . With the potential to produce up to 225,000 barrels of oil per day (bpd) and process 12 million cubic meters of gas per day, the FPSO’s design incorporates SBM Offshore’s Fast4Ward new build, multi-purpose hull.
Petrobras’ Engineer of Subsea Equipment outlined: “ Teams from planning, logistics, engineering, vessels, service providers and many other internal and external areas, worked in a coordinated manner to ensure on-time delivery, with a total focus on safety during the execution of services in the 24 mooring systems of this GIANT. “This record is further proof that we are prepared for the challenges of the future, always with the commitment to operate safely, efficiently and agilely, reinforcing the true spirit of Petrobras. And it is with great pride that, this weekend, I embark on this giant to contribute to the pull-in team, in search of the first oil! We move on!”
Equipped with decarbonization technologies to curb greenhouse gas emissions, the FPSO Almirante Tamandaré also comes with the technology to use heat, eliminating the need for additional energy, on top of equipment for removing CO2 from gas and its subsequent injection into the reservoir. The unit will have an estimated greenhouse gas (GHG) emission intensity below 10 kg CO2e/boe.
Petrobras reached a cumulative production of 1 billion barrels of oil from Búzios in March 2024, with five FPSOs operating on the field: P-74 , P-75 , P-76 , P-77 , and Almirante Barroso . The Búzios consortium encompasses Petrobras (operator), its Chinese partners, CNOOC and CNODC , alongside Pré-sal Petróleo S.A. – PPS , the company managing the production sharing contracts (PSCs).
The Brazilian giant is also pursuing oil and gas development projects outside Brazil. Recently, the firm confirmed the results from a gas discovery off the coast of Colombia.
An investment of $1.2 billion is expected in the exploratory phase and another $2.9 billion in the production development phase to see the Colombian project through, as included in Petrobras’ ‘ 2025-2029 Business Plan . ’