ANP approves Petrobas’ plan to upgrade Marlim field

Offshore staff

RIO DE JANEIRO -The National Agency of Petroleum, Natural Gas and Biofuels (ANP) has approved a plan for Petrobras to renew its development plan for the Marlim field offshore Brazil. The goal is to reverse the declining rate of oil production, as others in the Campos basin, said ANP’s Director of the Municipality Florival Carvalho.

Output in the area has stagnated as Petrobras has been unable to bring on new areas quickly enough to offset declines from older fields, Reuters reported. Petrobras will have to make substantial investments in Marlim to upgrade the field, according to ANP.

ANP, as a condition of the approval, made a series of requests and ordered the company to complete a field recovery planning document with investment commitments by year-end. The requirements call for the need to increase water injection into the field to capture residual oil and the application of technology and equipment to boost recovery of oil mixed with water and sediments. It also called for Petrobas to drill new wells and perform new seismic studies.

07/28/2014