FPSO P-79 left South Korea bound for Brazil to start producing in the Buzios Field next year

Nov. 11 – The P-79 FPSO left the Hanwha Ocean shipyard, located in Geoje-Si, South Korea, heading to the Búzios field, in the pre-salt layer of the Santos Basin. The unit will be towed to the operating area with the crew on board, which should speed up the start of production. Arrival is scheduled for February 2026.

“The arrival of the manned platform, as was done with the P-78, has proven to be a successful strategy to reduce the time to start production. This is the eighth unit of the 12 planned for the field. Our expectation is that we will be able to anticipate the first oil by two months compared to what is planned in our Strategic Plan. This is yet another result of the dedication of the entire Petrobras team, combined with negotiation with suppliers, detailed planning and, above all, discipline to carry out what was planned,” assessed the Director of Engineering, Technology and Innovation, Renata Baruzzi.

The start of operations of the P-79 is scheduled for August 2026 and should increase the current production capacity of the field by approximately 15.6%, raising it to approximately 1.3 million barrels per day, also considering the start of production of the P-78, scheduled for December of this year.

The Búzios field, located in water depths of up to 2,100 meters and approximately 180 km off the coast of Rio de Janeiro, currently has six FPSOs in operation: P-74, P-75, P-76, P-77, Almirante Barroso, and Almirante Tamandaré. In October, the field surpassed the mark of 1 million barrels of oil per day, consolidating itself as Petrobras’ largest producer.

The P-79 project includes 14 wells, eight producers and six WAG injectors (alternating water and gas injection). The hull was built at the Hanwha Ocean shipyard in Geoje-Si, where the integration and commissioning of the topside modules, manufactured in China, Brazil, South Korea, and Indonesia, also took place.