TotalEnergies Inks Agua Marinha PSC in Brazil

TotalEnergies and its co-venturers Petrobras, QatarEnergy, and Petronas Petróleo Brasil (PPBL) have all signed a production sharing contact (PSC) for the Agua Marinha block in the pre-salt Campos Basin, offshore Brazil.

The block was awarded in the Open Acreage under Production Sharing Regime – 1st Cycle held by Brazil’s National Petroleum Agency (ANP) in December 2022.

Agua Marinha is a 1,300 sq.km (500 square miles) exploration block situated south of the Marlim Sul field and about 140 km (87 miles) from shore. The work program includes drilling one firm exploration well during the exploration period, TotalEnergies said in its statement.

“The signature of the PSC for Agua Marinha expands our presence in this promising area of the pre-salt Campos Basin, alongside our three strategic partners, and we are looking forward looking to exploring the block and drilling the Touro prospect” said Kevin McLachlan, Senior Vice President, Exploration of TotalEnergies.

“Offshore Brazil, with its material low-cost, low-emission resources is a core area for the Company. This block, along with the two South Santos basin concessions obtained in 2022, further reinforces our exploration portfolio in this high potential area,” he added.

TotalEnergies will participate in the block with a 30 percent interest, alongside operator Petrobras (30 percent), QatarEnergy (20 percent) and PPBL (20 percent).

TotalEnergies' Exploration & Production portfolio in Brazil currently includes 11 licenses, of which four are operated. In 2022, the company's average production in the country was 104,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day.

TotalEnergies noted it is also investing in the growth of the renewable energy segment in Brazil. TotalEnergies' subsidiary Total Eren has 300 MW of solar and wind projects in operation. In October 2022, the company entered into a partnership with Casa dos Ventos, Brazil's leading renewable energy player, to jointly develop a 12 GW renewable energy portfolio.

Additionally, Petrobras noted that it has signed two more PSCs, namely for Norte de Brava, where Petrobras acquired the block in its entirety, and Sudoeste de Sagitário, a block that was acquired with a 60 percent stake in consortium with Shell (40 percent).

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