Petrobras's average oil production in Brazil in September was 2,003,940 barrels a day, a volume 1.2% greater than that produced in August this year and 5.6% greater than production in September last year. The result also represented a new monthly record for production, on exceeding the previous record, obtained in March this year, by 12,000 barrels.
Petrobras is the Brazilian state-controlled oil and gas multinational. Production of natural gas in domestic fields, in turn, reached a daily average of 51.358 million cubic meters, maintaining the same levels as produced in the previous month and in September 2008.
According to Petrobras, the new record was possible due to the return to operation of platform FPSO Cidade de São Vicente, in Tupi field, in the pre-salt layer of Santos Basin, and of platform P-19, in Marlim field, in Campos Basin.
Also contributing to the growth is the entry into operation of Piranema Platform, in Sergipe, and the greater production of wells connected to the P-48 (Caratinga) and P-51 (Marlim Sul) platforms, both in Campos Basin – which caused a difference of 24,000 barrels a day when compared to August 2009.
Petrobras conjugated production of oil and natural gas (barrels of oil equivalent) in Brazil was 2,326,969 barrels of oil a day, 4.5% growth over the volume produced in September last year and 1.3% over August this year, according to the state-owned oil company.
The volume of oil and natural gas produced in countries in which Petrobras operates reached 245,263 barrels of oil equivalent a day, a result that was 10% above production in September 2008.
The Petrobras figures show that this increase is due to the start of production of Agbami and Akpo fields, both in Nigeria. When compared with August this year, the growth was 4.7%, due to the normalization of production in Austral Basin, in Argentina, after the end of a union mobilization that took place that month.
When considering fields in Brazil and abroad, total Petrobras production of oil and natural gas reached a daily average of 2,572,232 barrels of oil equivalent in September, growth of 5% over the same month in 2008 and 1.6% over August of the present year.
Petrobras gas production abroad, in turn, reached 16.311 million cubic meters a day – growth of 9.9% over the previous month, also boosted by the normalization of production in Austral Basin, in Argentina.
Repsol's Big Gas Find
Repsol confirmed the potential reserves discovered in Venezuela in September. It may include recoverable reserves of gas of between 1 billion and 1.4 billion barrels of oil equivalent.
The potential of the reserves in Cardón IV block were confirmed after tests at well Perla 1X. The discovery, made in the Gulf of Venezuela, is the largest ever promoted in the history of the country and also the largest ever by Repsol.
Well Perla 1X reached depths of 3,147 meters, at a water depth of 60 meters. Production tests resulted in a flow of 570,000 cubic meters of gas a day and 620 barrels of oil a day, restricted by specifications of installations.
Repsol operates the well in partnership with Italian company Eni, in the consortium that discovered block Cardón IV. Each one of the companies should have 32.5% of production of the field, whereas Venezuelan oil company Petróleos de Venezuela, PDVSA, should have the remaining 35%.
The specialized hydrocarbon information service (IHS) classified the discovery of well Perla as one of the five largest discoveries in the world in 2009.
ABr
