TotalEnergies EP Brasil, a subsidiary of France’s energy giant TotalEnergies, has set the wheels in motion to transfer its non-operated interest in a deepwater development project in the pre-salt area of the Santos Basin to Shell Brasil, an affiliate of the UK-headquartered oil and gas heavyweight Shell, in exchange for the latter’s partial stake in its producing field off the coast of Brazil.
The signed agreement enables TotalEnergies to exchange its 20% non-operated interest in the Gato do Mato project for an additional 3% interest in the Lapa oil field, subject to customary conditions precedent, notably regulatory approvals. Upon completion, the former, which acts as the operator, will increase its stake in Lapa to 48%, alongside Shell (27%) and Repsol Sinopec (25%).
Located 270 kilometers off the coast of Brazil, the Lapa deep-offshore field is situated in the Santos Basin. The Lapa South-West tie-back development, approved in 2023, is set to increase production by 25,000 barrels per day upon start-up by year-end, bringing total output of the field to 60,000 barrels per day.
Javier Rielo , Senior Vice President Americas of Exploration & Production at TotalEnergies, commented: “This transaction is aligned with our strategy to focus on low-cost, low-emission projects, such as Atapu 2 and Sepia 2 in Brazil, sanctioned in 2024. In addition, it further strengthens our operated position in the Lapa field, in the pre-salt Santos Basin.”
On the other hand, the swap transaction allows Shell to boost its operated working interest in Gato do Mato to 70%, while Ecopetrol retains its 30%. This is a unified undertaking that encompasses the BM-S-54 concession agreement and the Gato do Mato South production sharing agreement (PSC).
Both licenses are operated by Shell with a 50% stake, alongside Ecopetrol (30%), TotalEnergies (20%), and Pré-Sal Petróleo S.A. (PPSA) acting as PSC manager. Gato do Mato’s partners made a final investment decision in March 2025.
Encapsulating an estimated volume of recoverable resources of approximately 370 million barrels, the start-up of the project is targeted for 2029.
The swap deal comes shortly after TotalEnergies made arrangements to sell its stake in a production sharing contract offshore Nigeria to Shell.