Transocean and Maersk Drilling continue in the dispute for the charter of the rig that will operate alongside the West Saturn unit for Equinor, drilling the development wells of the Bacalhau project, in the Santos Basin. The two groups presented the best proposals, being selected to proceed with the negotiation process with the Norwegian oil company.
According to sources heard by PetróleoHoje, Transocean disputes the deal with the drillship Skyros, Maersk Drilling, in turn, presented three different possibilities for offers, one with Maersk Developer, which would be made available after the end of the Karoon campaign. in Baúna, and another with two units located in the Gulf of Mexico, in the Mexican portion.
The campaign in Bacalhau will last one year. Originally, the scope of the contract also included the drilling of a well in Argentina, but this service is being re-evaluated by Equinor.
The Norwegian oil company’s plan was to start the campaign for Argentina and then carry out the Bacalhau program. In recent weeks, however, the company has considered not only the possibility of changing the order of work, but also not including the well in the neighboring country.
Negotiations and the contracting process are being conducted by the board of Equinor of Norway. About a week ago, rumors circulated that the oil company had signed a letter of intent to charter the rig, but the rumors have not been confirmed.
Seadrill’s West Saturn drillship should start operating in Bacalhau between the end of the first semester and the beginning of the second semester of 2022. The second drillship should only start campaign between the end of 2022 and the beginning of 2023.
The first phase of the Bacalhau production development project will require investments of around US$ 8 billion, with a total of 19 wells – 11 producers, four gas injectors and four water injectors -, which will be interconnected to an FPSO with to produce 220,000 bpd. The production unit is being built by Modec, at the Dalian shipyard, in China. The production system will come into operation in 2024.
Located in deep waters of the Santos Basin, the Bacalhau project will mark the first pre-salt project development in Brazil operated by an IOC. The Bacalhau consortium is also made up of ExxonMobil and Petrogal.
The development of the first phase will focus on the southern area of ??the field, in the former BM-S-8 area. The next stage, still without a defined date, will focus on the northern portion of the asset, directed to the extinct area of ??Carcará Norte.
Source: PetroleoHoje
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