Sapinhoá field begins production off Brazil
Sapinhoá mapCommercial production has begun at Sapinhoá field, Repsol announced on 8 January 2013.
The field, run by a consortium of Repsol, Petrobras and BG Group, is located in Block BM-S-9 in Brazil’s pre-salt region. The first producing well, Guara-1, has been connected to the Cidade de São Paulo FPSO. Guara-1, Repsol said, has a potential production rate of 25,000 b/d. With more wells to be connected to the Cidade de São Paulo platform, Repsol estimates a production rate of 120,000 b/d by 1H 2014.
The company expects a second platform, Ilhabela Cidade, to begin operations 2H 2014.
Block BM-S-9, is operated by Petrobras (45%) Repsol Sinopec Brazil (25%) and BG Group (30%). Sapinhoá has a total recoverable volume estimated at 2.1 billion boe.
“The start-up of production from this field marks an important milestone in Repsol’s growth strategy laid out in the 2012-2016 Strategic Plan and which contemplates growth rates higher than the industry average, to reach 500,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day in 2016, with an annual reserve replacement rate of at least 120%,” Repsol said in a press release.
The Cidade de São Paulo is anchored at a water depth of 2,140m, 310km offshore Brazil. It has a capacity to process 120,000 b/d and 5 million m3 of gas.
The high quality crude oil produced of an average density of 30° API will be transferred to tankers, and the gas will be transported through the Sapinhoá-Lula-Mexilhao pipeline to the Monteiro Lobato (UTGCA) treatment plant in Caraguatatuba, on the São Paulo State coast.
