Shell to raise production at two deepwater projects off Brazil

Royal Dutch Shell PLC, along with partners Petroleo Brasileiro SA (Petrobras) and Oil & Natural Gas Corp., will increase production at its deepwater projects at Parque das Conchas and the Bijupira-Salema fields offshore Brazil.

Four new production wells will be drilled at the Bijupira-Salema fields as part of a redevelopment that is expected to increase production there to 35,000 boe/d in 2014. The fields, which lie in 400-900 m of water, have produced nearly 100 million boe since the project came online in 2003. Shell holds 80% in the project; Petrobras, 20%.

Shell will begin Phase 3 of its Parque das Conchas project, which lies on Block BC-10 in more than 2,000 m of water, by installing subsea infrastructure at the Massa and Argonauta O-South fields, which will connect to the Espirito Santo floating production, storage, and offloading vessel, the hub of the project (OGJ Online, Oct. 15, 2010). Once operational, Phase 3 will reach a peak production of 28,000 boe/d. Shell’s share of the project is 50%, with Petrobras at 35% and India’s ONGC at 15%.

Shell expects to have Phase 2 of the project, which will incorporate the Argonauta O-North field, online later this year. Phase 2’s production is expected to reach 35,000 boe/d.

As a whole, the BC-10 project has produced more than 70 million boe since its start-up in 2009.

Shell has two FPSOs in operation offshore Brazil—the Espirito Santo and the Fluminese at the Bijupira-Salema fields.