The analysis of PETROBRAS production operations records has been of great importance not only for the effective correction of failures but also for the continuos evolution and improvement of forecoming projects, with paramount reflections on investments and operational costs reduction.
Through failure mode breakdown, this paper measures Campos Basin production continuity, compares fixed and floating systems efficiency and exemplifies the production facilities costs saving in a selected field (West Enchova).
Since 1974, with the discovery of the Garoupa field, the Campos Basin, located nearly 250 Km N of Rio de Janeiro, has been developed at a fast rate. The oil production of this area, started in 1977, represents at present 60% of the total Brazilian production, being originated from 22 fields with 186 wells which are processed by means of 12 Floating Production Systems (FPS) and 7 large fixed platforms. The productions from the Northeast Pole shall start within a few months, including a total of 120 wells and 7 medium-size fixed platforms.
FIG. 1 shows the present configuration of the Campos Basin, with emphasis on the central platforms of Garoupa in the North Pole and Enchova in the South Pole, wherefrom the pipelines for oil and gas transfer to the continent originate.
With the purpose of producing oil at the minimum terms and costs, PETROBRAS opted for the implementation of floating production systems, initially referred to as early production systems, for smaller, marginal or still not fully delimited fields. With the fields already discovered and the good prospects available, particularly in deep waters, a proliferation of new facilities shall occur, with an increased number of floating systems.
Sophisticated production facilities with exaggerated flexibility and doubtful costs/benefit ratios, particularly in the case of large fixed platforms, constitute also problems to overcome. Even in the North Sea, whose large fixed platforms served as models for those utilized by PETROBRAS, the necessity of more favorable economic indexes in the feasibility studies has led to the simplification of its new installations. The higher oil prices would make the early projects feasible. Now, however, optimization must be looked for to reduce operational and investment costs, not being acceptable either those long design and construction schedules which delay the production start of new fields.
Since the problems presented are intensified by the larger and larger necessity of resources for the development of new fields, PETROBRAS has taken steps as follows:
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Increasing the production capacity of the new floating units or even eliminating the existing ones with utilization of subsea manifolds for concentrating the production from wells equipped with wet Christmas trees and consequent integration with other systems with the purpose of releasing the semisubmersible platforms utilized. For the production from deep-water fields floating production systems with capacities between 100,000 and 150,000 BPD are anticipated;
