Enauta opts to take over Atlanta after Barra exits

Closing out 2020, Enauta recently announced that it has decided to take over full ownership of the working interest in Block BS-4, where the producing Atlanta field is located.

The company opted to take over an additional 50 percent interest in the offshore block in the Santos Basin from its partner Barra Energia, which announced its decision to withdraw from the block in November of last year.

Barra’s move left Enauta to decide whether to take over Barra’s stake in the block or to proceed with a joint abandonment of the project once the early production system had ceased operation. 

Enauta said it had decided to acquire Barra’s stake. After approval from ANP, Barra Energia will transfer $43.9 million to Enauta related to the abandonment operations of the three wells and the decommissioning of existing facilities at the field. 

Only 1.25% of oil produced

Décio Oddone, Enauta’s CEO said: “Atlanta has 1.3 billion barrels of oil in place, of which only 1.25% has been produced so far. We made this decision because we believe it is possible to develop a more resilient project that can create value despite a scenario of lower oil prices.” 

Enauta said it would seek partners to develop the field and start the bidding process for FPSO freight operations, “a key stage for the project’s approval.”  

In an update on November 11, Enauta said it expected Atlanta to produce an average of 20,000 bbl/d of oil for 2020 and 16,000 bbl/d for 2021. However, it is not clear if this projection still stands given that Enauta announced a “preventive suspension” of production in Atlanta later in the month, after corrosion was found on some of the equipment that could harm functionality.

Source: Offshore Engineer