Sembcorp-Built Vessel Will Have Capacity to Produce 225,000 BPD
Swiss engineering firm ABB has won a contract to supply the complete electrical system automation for the Petrobras-owned P-82 floating production, storage and offloading, or FPSO platform in Brazil.
The contract to deliver the topside and hull-side power system was awarded by Sembcorp Marine, which itself won a contract late last year to build the P-82 platform, one of the largest such units to be deployed at the 853-square-kilometre Buzios oil and gas field in the Santos Basin pre-salt province off the coast of Rio de Janeiro.
P-82 will have a capacity to produce up to 225,000 barrels of crude oil per day, process 12 million cubic metres of gas per day and store more than 1.6 million barrels. The platform is scheduled to start operations in 2026, and will be the tenth to be installed in the Buzios field and number 29 to go into production in the pre-salt province.
According to ABB, the topside system for P-82 will be installed in an ABB eHouse solution – a prefabricated, modular substation that reduces costs, risk exposure and onsite work, as all components are wired, tested and commissioned before shipment to the yard.
“We have a proven record in electrical and automation solutions for FPSOs both in Brazil and worldwide,” said Brandon Spencer, president of ABB Energy Solutions. “This project aligns with our own commitment to reduce the emissions footprint of existing hydrocarbon infrastructure as we balance the needs of the energy transition with rising consumption demands, especially in developing economies.”
State-owned Petrobras is the dominant force in the development of Brazil’s pre-salt reserves – so-called because they are buried beneath thick sheets of salt. The state-controlled giant’s latest investment plan calls for the deployment of 18 new FPSOs in the next four years. New-generation FPSOs such as P-82 are equipped with emissions-reduction solutions, such as carbon capture, utilization and storage, or CCUS technology.
The global FPSO market value is expected to reach US$20 billion by 2027, up from US$12 billion in 2021, according to a report last year by The Insight Partners, quoted by ABB.
ABB and Sembcorp are members of the Breakbulk Global Shipper Network, a worldwide network of shippers involved in the engineering, manufacturing and production of project cargo. A reception will be held for network members in the BGSN Lounge at Breakbulk Europe 2023, taking place on 6-8 June at Rotterdam Ahoy.
To register for this year’s conference, click here.
PHOTO: The Goliat FPSO unit in Norway, for which ABB supplied much of the electrification and automation. CREDIT: ABB
