Petróleo Brasileiro SA (Petrobras) and partners in Libra block have taken final investment decision for the fourth phase of the Mero project, 180 km offshore Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in the presalt area of Santos basin.
SBM Offshore signed a letter of intent for a 22.5-year lease and operating contract for the Mero 4 FPSO Alexandre de Gusmão. It will produce 180,000 b/d and treat 12 million std cu m/d gas. The unit will have a water injection capacity of 250,000 b/d and a minimum storage capacity of 1.4 million bbl crude oil. The FPSO will be spread moored in about 1,900 m water depth.
Startup is expected by 2025. It follows investment decisions for Mero 1 (startup expected in 2022), Mero 2 (startup expected in 2023) and Mero 3 (startup expected in 2024) FPSOs (OGJ Online, Aug. 17, 2020). All have a liquid processing capacity of 180,000 b/d.
Mero field has been in pre-production since 2017 with the 50,000-b/d Pioneiro de Libra FPSO.
The Libra consortium is operated by Petrobras (40%) as part of an international partnership including TotalEnergies SE (20%), Shell Brasil (20%), CNOOC Ltd. (10%), and CNPC (10%). Pre-Sal Petróleo (PPSA) manages the Libra Production Sharing Contract.
