Page 40: of Marine Technology Magazine (January 2011)

40 MTR January/February 2011 level of quality control. The only system that will differ in each FPSO will be the CO² removal system, which will be dependent on oilfield characteristics. The Rio Grande

Shipyard is going through a renovation which has already seen it build a large drydock and other new key facilities at its location in the city of Rio Grande, in the southern- most state of Rio Grande do Sul. The P-57 FPSO, which was christened at the Brasfels shipyard in Angra dos Reis in Rio de Janeiro on October 7, 2010, will be the model for the FPSO production line at Rio Grande.

The P-57 production system is equipped with unprece- dented technology for collection of seismic data in 4D, installed permanently on the seabed. This technology per- mits greater speed in obtaining seismic data, as well as improving the quality of reservoir interpretation, conse- quently enhancing production efficiency. The unit will also adopt an innovative method of oil recovery from the reservoir to the FPSO, through the use of a subsea cen- trifugal pumping system. “The cost of building platforms (production) in Brazil is already a little bit less than international market prices,” said the Executive Engineering Manager for Petrobras,

Perdo José Barusco Filho. Highlighting that the P-57 was build at the Brasfels shipyard in Rio with 68% local con- tent, and that this had no influence on the unit´s price, which added up to $1,2 billion, including conversion.

The ship hull for P-57 was converted at the Keppel ship- yard in Singapore and the next two FPSOs that will be build are also having their hulls converted in Singapore as there is still no yard deemed specialized enough for this task in Brazil. The old Inhaúma shipyard in Rio, which has been leased for 20 years to Petrobras will be config- ured for this task.

Increased O&G Research Investments

At the same time, Petrobras has partnered with the

Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ) and

Schlumberger to open a $10-million research center. The state of the art facility will be built alongside the COPPE “Ocean Lab,” and will be dedicated to the development of local technologies for offshore exploration.

This new facility will focus on developing geosciences software, new technologies for producing and characteriz- ing reservoirs in the pre-salt, and building a 4D geophys- ical processing and interpretation center. Research proj- ects are planned in electromagnetic characterization, seis-

New P-57 FPSO will be the model for future pre-salt units