Norwegian energy developer BW Energy has taken a final investment decision on the $1.5-billion Maromba field project offshore Brazil, targeting 123 million barrels of 2P reserves and projected to boost net production by 2028. The $1.5 billion will be split between investments, with approximately $1.2 billion going to initial development and approximately $300 million to secondary drilling.
It is reported that the Maromba oil field is located in the southern part of the Campos Basin in the offshore area of Brazil, about 100 kilometers southeast of the city of Cabo Frio. It is planned to start production in 2027, with a target of extracting 500 million barrels of crude oil, and the initial daily production is expected to be about 50,000 barrels of oil. By 2028, this oil field will more than double the total net production of BW Energy, and it has a short investment payback period.
The development will be executed in two phases, beginning with six production wells and followed by a secondary drilling campaign. The project will include a converted jack-up wellhead platform installed at around 150 metres depth and a refurbished FPSO, BW Maromba, which is undergoing refurbishment in China and has a storage capacity of 1 million barrels. According to BW Energy’s third quarter 2024 financial report from November 2024, the FPSO is awaiting repairs and upgrades at COSCO Shipping Heavy Industry (Dalian).
On January 17, 2024, BW Energy and COSCO Shipping Heavy Industry (Dalian) signed a project cooperation memorandum and an initial project commencement letter for the FPSO BW Maromba, which arrived at the yard at the end of January of the same year.
“We have spent time on optimising the Maromba development plan and concluded on a highly competitive concept with a repurposed jack-up platform and FPSO, repeating the approach we very successfully applied in Gabon,” CEO Carl K. Arnet said.
“Maromba will enable BW Energy to deliver industry-leading organic production growth and position the company for further low-cost developments of known potential developments. We expect to unlock significant shareholder value in all realistic oil price scenarios.”
BW Energy expects production costs below USD 10 per barrel over the first five years and an IRR above 30% at USD 60 Brent. It anticipates investing USD 1 billion before first oil, with an additional USD 200 million for initial drilling and USD 300 million for the second campaign. Financing will include cash, undrawn facilities, cashflow and infrastructure financing. BW Group has also secured a USD 250-million shareholder loan facility.
BW Energy is finalising regulatory approvals and contracts for services and long-lead items. The Maromba field, in the Campos Basin, has seen oil discovered in eight out of nine wells drilled. The company acquired 100% ownership in 2019 for USD 115 million. Magma Oil holds a 5% back-in right, to be exercised upon first oil.
BW Energy is an upstream oil and gas company with operations in Brazil and West Africa. It focuses on proven hydrocarbon basins and employs phased developments using refurbished production assets to minimise capex and accelerate time to first oil.