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The DST process allowed the company to exploration work at Alto de Cabo Frio Central
confirm its discovery of oil in the 1-BRSA- Noroeste in order to develop a better idea of the
1383A-RJS well, Petrobras said. It noted that size of the new exploration target’s reserves.
the discovery had first been announced in early Petrobras is developing the block in co-op-
April but had now been verified. eration with BP Energy do Brasil Ltd, a unit of
The testing “evaluated a thick interval of pre- BP (UK).
salt carbonate reservoir rocks and confirmed The two companies have split equity in the
good productivity,” Petrobras said. “During the project on a 50:50 basis, but the state-owned
test, oil samples were collected and will be sub- firm has agreed to serve as operator.
sequently characterized by laboratory analyses.” The NOC acquired rights to Alto de Cabo
It added: “The result is the fruit of the consor- Frio Central Noroeste in October 2017. It did so
tium’s strategy of maximising the use of the data during the Third Bidding Round of the National
and of applying new solutions, allowing for the Agency for Petroleum, Natural Gas and Biofuels
real-time processing of the acquired data, as well (ANP), under the production-sharing regime,
as a quick and safe decision-making.” and was originally managed by Pré-Sal Petróleo
The NOC’s next step will be to continue SA (PPSA). ™

PERU
Marubeni, Osaka Gas, Peru LNG planning

study of synthetic methane production

TWO Japanese companies, Marubeni and The remaining equity in Peru LNG is split
Osaka Gas, have announced plans to team up between Hunt Oil (US), with 50%; SK Energy
with Peru LNG for a study of synthetic methane (South Korea), 20%; and Shell (UK), 20%.
production in Peru. The partners spent $3.8bn to build the Pampa
Marubeni said in a statement that the part- Melchorita complex, which includes a 4.45mn
ners had signed an agreement outlining their tonne per year (tpy) gas liquefaction plant
plans for a joint study of the feasibility of pro- built by Chicago Bridge & Iron Co. (CBI) and
ducing synthetic methane in Peru for sale to a marine terminal constructed by a consortium
domestic and export markets, including Japan. known as CDB. (This group includes Italy’s
The study will analyse and evaluate the viability Saipem, Luxembourg’s Jan de Nul and Brazil’s
of such a project, which has “great potential to Odebrecht.)
achieve carbon neutrality” in the gas sector, the The complex also incorporates a storage
statement said. depot with two 130,000-cubic metre tanks and
It went on to say that the companies were a 34-inch (860-mm) natural gas pipeline. This
examining proposals for producing synthetic pipe handles gas from fields in the Cusco region
gas through methanation, a process that com- that are being developed by YPF, the national oil
bines green hydrogen produced from renewa- company (NOC) of Argentina, and Repsol of
ble energy with carbon dioxide extracted from Spain. The link runs for 408 km from Chiquin-
industrial facilities to yield methane, the key tirca, a town in the Ayacucho region, to the LNG
component of natural gas. Peru is well suited for plant. ™
such an endeavour, as it has existing gas infra-
structure that can be used for the project and
abundant supplies of renewable energy, it added.
The scheme is also in line with the Japanese
government’s Sixth Strategic Energy Plan, which
was unveiled in October 2021. Under that plan,
synthetic methane is slated to play a major role
in the Japanese gas sector’s progress toward car-
bon neutrality, as it is supposed to account for
more than 1% of all gas circulating through the
country’s pipelines by 2030, rising to 90% by
2050.
Marubeni is already a shareholder in Peru
LNG. It owns a 10% non-operating stake in the
natural gas liquefaction plant and complex in
Pampa Melchorita. Marubeni is already one of Peru LNG’s minority shareholders (Photo: Peru LNG)

Week 28 14•July•2022 www. NEWSBASE .com P13