Brazilian state-controlled oil and gas multinational Petrobras announced the discovery of light oil reserves in Sergipe Basin. According to information disclosed by the company, March 16, preliminary estimates point towards the presence of extremely high-quality oil.
The discovery was made after the drilling of an exploratory well in the post salt area of Piranema. The economically recoverable volume of oil is estimated at 15 million barrels. The well is located at a water depth of 2,693 meters (8,835 feet).
According to Petrobras, the exploratory well was drilled in the far north of the Piranema concession area, around 28 kilometers (17.4 miles) off the coast of Sergipe.
Due to the existence of complete production and transfer infrastructure in the region, the company is studying the possibility of connecting the well that originated the discovery to a production platform that is already operating in Piranema Field.
The discovery will be the object of additional evaluation for better understanding of the reservoir and the drilling of a second production well.
According to the oil company, the discovery is the fruit of an exploratory strategy to intensify the works close to fields in production.
This following the example of Pampo and Barracuda Fields in 2010, aimed at making use of the capacity at existing installations, reducing the production costs and speeding up production of new volumes of oil.