Mero oil field : Petrobras and partners to move ahead with phase 3 development

Petrobras and its partners will move ahead with the phase 3 development of the Mero oil field in the Libra block offshore Brazil, having taken the investment decision.

The Mero field is located deep offshore in the prolific pre-salt area of the Santos Basin, 180 kilometers off the Rio de Janeiro coast.

The partners will deploy the Mero 3 floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel, which will have a liquid treatment capacity of 180,000 barrels per day with startup expected to happen by 2024.

The Mero oil field, which has been producing since 2017 through the 50,000-barrel-per-day Pioneiro de Libra FPSO, will also have the Mero 1 FPSO, which is slated to begin production in 2021, and the Mero 2 FPSO whose startup is scheduled for 2023. Both the new FPSOs will have a liquid processing capacity of 180,000 barrels per day.

Petrobras is the operator of the Libra Consortium with a 40% stake and is partnered by Total (20%), Shell Brasil (20%), CNOOC (10%) and CNPC (10%). The Libra production sharing contract is managed by Pré-Sal Petróleo (PPSA).

Arnaud Breuillac – Total Exploration and Production President said: “The decision to launch Mero 3 marks a new milestone in the large-scale development of the vast oil resources of the Mero field – estimated at 3 to 4 billion barrels. It is in line with Total’s growth strategy in Brazil’s deep-offshore, based on giant projects enabling production at competitive cost, resilient in the face of oil price volatility.

“The Mero project will contribute to the Group’s production from 2020 onwards, and we are targeting a production of 150,000 barrels per day in Brazil by 2025. ”