"We saw there was potential for another production unit on the Espirito Santo pre-salt and decided that the Espadarte offered scope for achieving new efficiencies," said Jose Antonio Figueiredo, Petrobras' general manager for exploration and production.
A rising water cut means the FPSO Espadarte is currently producing around 30,000 barrels per day, against a nominal capacity for 100,000 bpd.
Figueiredo said subsea separation technology is expected to play an important role on the Espadarte and Golfinho projects, offering a means of extracting water and maximising production capacity on other older units in the area.
Petrobras
