Unitization
Oil and/or natural gas deposits do not respect the geographical boundaries imposed by man. That is, geology ignores geography. Its limits can go beyond the areas contracted in exploratory auctions and expand beyond the boundaries of blocks, states and even countries (see infographics below).
Originally adopted in the United States and adopted throughout the world, the procedure for individualizing production and the resulting agreements are a reality in Brazil. Production of a deposit that extends by areas of concession, costly assignment or production sharing belonging to different operators or by areas not yet contracted, can be developed in a single project.
These arrangements avoid predatory production of the deposit. It allows costs to be shared among rights holders over the areas. It also allows the investments to be made in the shared deposit to be optimized with regard to the rationality of production and improve the recovery factor of the reservoir. As a result, the economic indicators of the project tend to be maximized.
In the Pre-Salt Polygon and strategic areas, Pré-Sal Petróleo is the company responsible for representing the Federal Government in these agreements. If the project is in the exploratory stage, the Production Individualization Pre-Agreement (Pre-AIP) is entered into. If it is already in the production phase, the Production Individualization Agreement (AIP) is formalized.
Agreements entered into by Pré-Sal Petróleo
Since its establishment, Pré-Sal Petróleo has already entered into seven Production Individualization. Agreements (AIPs). Two others are underway and 13 potential cases are being assessed (Figures 2 and 3). In order to enter into an AIP, there must be a consensus between the parties on the participation and respective volumes of oil and/or natural gas. After the parties have reached a consensus, the consortium and Pré-Sal Petróleo sign the AIP, which becomes effective when made effective by the National Agency of Petroleum, Gas and Biofuels (ANP).
AIPs already signed
The Tartaruga Verde Field is located in the Campos Basin, 127 kilometers off the state of Rio de Janeiro coast. The field is operated by Petrobras under concession. It was the first AIP entered into by Pré-Sal Petróleo, creating the Tartaruga Verde Shared Deposit. The agreement was signed on October 31, 2014 and made effective in March 2018.
Lula is the main oil and natural gas producing field in the pre-salt reservoirs. Located in the Santos Basin, the block is operated by Petrobras (65%) with partners, Shell (25%) and Petrogal (10%). Negotiations for this AIP began in July 2014 and the agreement was signed in August 2015.
The Sapinhoá Field is an important producer of oil and natural gas. Located in the Santos Basin, it is operated by Petrobras (45%) with partners Shell (30%) and Repsol-Sinopec (25%). The AIP negotiations began in September 2014 and the agreement was signed on January 31, 2016.
The Nautilius Shared Deposit is part of the BC-10s concession contract in the Campos Basin, where Shell is an operator (50%) and ONGC (27%) and QPI (23%) are partners.
Negotiations for this AIP started in December 2014 and the agreement was submitted to the ANP in November 2015. The AIP has been effective since October 2017.
The Brava Field is located in the Campos Basin. The agreement was signed on October 25, 2018, between Pré-Sal Petróleo and Petrobras.
The Atapu Field is located in the Santos Basin. The agreement was signed on October, 2018, between Petrobras, Petrobras, Shell, Petrogal and Total. The start of production of Atapu is forecast for 2020.
The Mero Development Area (Libra Sharing Agreement) is operated by a consortium formed by Petrobras (40% operator), Shell (20%), Total (20%), CNPC (10%) and CNOOC (10%). The agreement was signed on December, 20, 2018.
Agreements under analysis
See where the Production Individualization Agreements are located
Map - Santos
Map - Campos