Petrobras and Equinor signed an agreement to assess the technical, economic and environmental feasibility of seven wind power generation projects off the Brazilian coast.
The proposed projects would generate a combined capacity of 14.5 GW of wind power, Petrobras (PBR) chief executive Jean Paul Prates said at the CERAWeek energy conference in Houston.
The project could cost $70 billion if confirmed, with production starting in 6 to 10 years, the chief executive said.
Prates said that the expenses for the study phase of the company – which is estimated to last until at least 2028 – are already contemplated in the business plan of Petrobras (PBR), without requiring more investments in the short term.
The agreement is the result of the partnership signed between Petrobras and Equinor in 2018 – and had its scope expanded beyond the two wind farm opportunities – Aracatu I and II (located on the coastal border between the states of Rio de Janeiro and Espírito Santo), initially planned.
In addition to these two projects, the new agreement provides for an assessment of the viability of wind farms Mangara (on the coast of Piauí); Ibitucatu (coast of Ceará); Colibri (on the coastal border between Rio Grande do Norte and Ceará); besides Atobá and Ibituassu (both on the coast of Rio Grande do Sul) – in a total of seven projects, effective until 2028.
Equinor has conducted business in Brazil since 2001, and the country is considered one of the core areas for Equinor. Equinor has a solid and diversified oil & gas portfolio in Brazil, with licenses both under development and in production such as Bacalhau, in Santos basin, and Peregrino, in Campos basin.
Within renewables, Equinor is owner in the Apodi Solar plant (162 MW) operated by Scatec. The plant started production in 2018. In 2022, construction work started in the Mendubim solar project (531 MW) realized in partnership with Scatec and Hydro Rein and planned to come in production in 2024.
Petrobras’ profitable portfolio diversification initiative will contribute to the success of the energy transition and is added to the plan to reduce operational emissions of greenhouse gases.
The company reiterates its goal of achieving short-term targets and its ambition to neutralize emissions in activities under its control by 2050 – as well as influencing partners in non-operated assets. In Petrobras’ Strategic Plan for the period from 2023 to 2027, offshore wind is one of the priority segments for in-depth studies.
The Brazilian potential for offshore wind power generation brings promising opportunities for diversifying the country’s energy matrix. Offshore wind generation technology uses the strength of winds at sea to produce renewable energy.
