By Christie U. Omonigho
- TotalEnergies EP Brasil signed an agreement with Shell Brasil;
- It aims to: increase its interest in the operated Lapa offshore field to 48% by acquiring an additional 3% stake from Shell’s divestment of its 20% stake in Gato do Mato
TotalEnergies just announced that it has entered into an agreement with Shell Brasil Petróleo Ltda to exchange its 20% non-operated interest in the Gato do Mato project for an additional 3% interest in Lapa, a producing offshore oil field. Upon closing, TotalEnergies will increase its stake in Lapa to 48% (Operator), alongside Shell (27%) and Repsol Sinopec (25%).
Located in the Santos Basin, 270 kilometers off the coast of Brazil, Lapa is a deep-offshore field operated by TotalEnergies. The Lapa South-West tie-back development, approved in 2023, will increase production by 25,000 barrels per day upon start-up by year-end, bringing total output of the field to 60,000 barrels per day, France TotalEnergies said in a statement posted to Energy Window International (Media) by email.
“This transaction is aligned with our strategy to focus on low-cost, low-emission projects, such as Atapu 2 and Sepia 2 in Brazil, sanctioned in 2024. In addition, it further strengthens our operated position in the Lapa field, in the pre-salt Santos Basin”, says Javier Rielo, Senior Vice President Americas, Exploration and Production at TotalEnergies.
This agreement, Energy Window International (Media) was told is subject to customary conditions precedent, notably regulatory approvals.
The French major says it has been operating in Brazil for 50 years with an employment figure of about 4 000 people. Adding some of its areas of operation to include, exploration and production, gas, renewable electricity (wind, solar, batteries), lubricants and elastomer processing.
The Company says its exploration and production portfolio currently includes 11 licenses, of which four are operated. Recalling that in 2024, the Company’s average production in the country was 153,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day. This is as it has disclosed that it has already started investing in the growth of the renewable energy segment in the country. The Company also disclosed that in October 2022, it entered a partnership with Casa dos Ventos, Brazil’s leading renewable energy player, to jointly develop a 12 GW renewable energy portfolio, including onshore wind, photovoltaic and battery storage.