A partnership between companies is a lot like a marriage: some are good, some are strained. That was the tenor of a Wednesday morning panel discussing perspectives on E&P in the South Atlantic that included operators Petrobras, Total, Shell, ExxonMobil, and Chevron.
The panel discussion comes a mere week after the announcement of a new 35-year partnerships between Shell, Total, Petrobras, and Chinese duo CNPC and CNOOC, for the Libra field. Shell, to say the least, is still beaming about the deal. “We’re (Shell) quite excited to be in it with Petrobras,” said Mark Shuster, Shell’s exploration executive vice president.
Eunice Carvalho, president of Chevron Brazil, whose own company is partnered with Petrobras, characterized Shell’s new deal with Petrobras as the “honeymoon phase” of their new marriage. Chevron and Petrobras’ marriage, she likened to a couple who have been married for a while. And it was plain to see during Carvalho’s presentation that Chevron and Petrobras are a lot like an old married couple who lightly bicker at each other while eating dinner with friends.
While discussing Chevron’s excitement over the Papa Terra development, operated by Petrobras, Carvalho ribbed Petrobras’ E&P Director José Miranda Formigli Filho who sat on the panel, asking whether it would be online any time soon. Papa Terra was originally set to begin production at the heavy oil field, located 68mi off the coast of Rio de Janeiro, in late October. The field is thought to contain 700MMboe.
Carvalho highlighted why a partnership between Chevron and Petrobras has worked with regards to the Frade and Papa Terra fields: technology exchanges. “We’re bringing together what we’re both good at, Petrobras with FPSOs and Chevron with tension leg wellhead platform (TLWP).
“Chevron is very proud of our partnership with Petrobras,” Carvalho said. “We feel like we’ve been married a while. Sometimes you fight. Sometimes you irritate each other. But mostly you work together; you talk through it, resolve your issues, and you bring the best that you can bring to the table."
Petrobras operates the Papa Terra field with 62.5% interest, Chevron holds the remaining 37.5%.
Image of Eunice Carvalho courtesy OTC Brasil.
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