Prio to take over Peregrino field operatorship in $3.5-billion deal with Equinor

Prio Tigris Ltda. agreed to take over operatorship of the Peregrino heavy oil field in Brazil through a $3.5-billion farm-in deal with Equinor. 

Peregrino, which lies in Campos basin 85 km east of Rio de Janeiro in 120 m water depth, consists of a floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel supported by three fixed platforms. Equinor has operated the field since 2009, producing about 300 million bbl of oil since then. 

The field has 27 producer wells and 6 injector wells currently operating. Production is carried out through the FPSO Peregrino, with an oil processing capacity of 110,000 b/d and 300,000 b/d of water. It currently produces an average of 100,000 b/d. Estimated reserves as of 2024 are 106 million bbl. 

The two-part agreement, with Equinor Brasil Energia Ltda., will see Prio Tigris, a subsidiary of Prio SA, acquire 40% and operatorship of Peregrino in the first part, and an additional 20% in part two. Once finalized, Prio will hold 100% interest in the field having closed a deal in 2024 for Sinochem’s 40% interest (OGJ Online, Sept. 30, 2024).

For the first part of the deal, Prio will pay $2.233 billion, with an additional payment of $166 million which is contingent on the completion of the second part of the deal. For the second part of the deal, Prio will pay $951 million. The final component is $150 million of maximum interest, reaching the $3.5 billion total.

Equinor will be responsible for field operations until the deal closes.