SBM Offshore, a Dutch operator of floating production, storage, and offloading (FPSO) vessels, has made significant progress on two FPSO projects, with the relevant engineering contracts set to be finalized.
On April 13, Petrobras announced on its official website that it had formally approved the final investment decision for the SEAP I project in the Sergipe-Alagoas Basin. The final investment decision for the SEAP II project was signed in December 2025, marking the full-scale advancement of the Sergipe-Alagoas Basin Deepwater Oil and Gas Development Project (SEAP).
The SEAP I and SEAP II projects will involve the construction of two new FPSOs, namely the P-81 FPSO and the P-87 FPSO. SBM Offshore will serve as the general contractor for both projects, which will be carried out under a Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) contract model. Under this model, the general contractor is responsible for the design, construction, installation, and operation of the projects during the initial contract period, after which they will be transferred to Petrobras.
Petrobras has now completed joint negotiations on the EPC contracts for the two FPSOs, thereby achieving significant synergies and economies of scale. The EPC contract with SBM Offshore is expected to be signed in May 2026.
According to the plan, the P-81 FPSO to be deployed at the SEAP I project will have a designed daily production capacity of 120,000 barrels of oil and a daily natural gas processing capacity of 10 million cubic meters; the P-87 FPSO to be deployed at the SEAP II project will also have a designed daily production capacity of 120,000 barrels of oil and a daily natural gas processing capacity of 12 million cubic meters. Crude oil production and natural gas exports are expected to commence in 2030 and 2031, respectively, with a combined designed capacity of 240,000 barrels of crude oil and 22 million cubic meters of natural gas per day.
In addition to the construction of two new FPSOs, the deepwater oil and gas development project in the Sergipe-Alagoas Basin also plans to construct and connect 32 oil and gas wells and lay a natural gas export pipeline approximately 134 kilometers long (111 kilometers offshore and 23 kilometers onshore). The bidding process for the project’s subsea Christmas trees and subsea core equipment has already begun, and the bidding process for the remaining infrastructure is expected to commence in 2026.
The SEAP I and SEAP II projects have a combined investment of over 60 billion reais and contain recoverable oil and gas reserves equivalent to more than 1 billion barrels. They are expected to generate substantial economic returns for the company and make a significant contribution to increasing national oil and gas production.
According to reports, SBM Offshore is a leading international offshore oil and gas services company headquartered in the Netherlands. It primarily provides full-lifecycle solutions for FPSOs, covering design, construction, leasing, and operation, and is expanding into the fields of low-carbon technologies and diversified marine infrastructure.
SBM Offshore recently signed a Front-End Engineering Design (FEED) contract for an FPSO with ExxonMobil Guyana, a subsidiary of ExxonMobil, marking the sixth collaboration between the two companies in the field of FPSO construction. In February of this year, SBM Offshore also sold the FPSO ONE GUYANA to ExxonMobil Guyana for a total cash consideration of $2.32 billion.
According to data, the FPSO ONE GUYANA is designed to produce approximately 250,000 barrels of crude oil per day, with an associated natural gas processing capacity of approximately 450 million cubic feet per day and a water injection capacity of approximately 300,000 barrels per day. It utilizes a tension-leg mooring system, operates at a water depth of approximately 1,800 meters, and has a crude oil storage capacity of approximately 2 million barrels.