Published: June 12, 2024 |

[Click image to enlarge]

[Click image to enlarge]

To improve the efficiency and safety of deep-water oil and gas activities, Petrobras and Curtiss-Wright have entered into a technological cooperation agreement to design a fully electric, highly reliable subsea pumping system with far less dependency on the production platform.

The new equipment produced by the partnership will reduce vessel costs, enable production through long subsea flowlines connecting the platform to the well, and help revitalize mature fields. Upon successful prototype testing, scheduled to begin in 2026 in the Jubarte and Espadarte fields in Campos Basin, it is expected to be available to the market as early as 2028.

The system Petrobras and Curtiss-Wright developed will pump raw oil and gas mixtures in a depth of up to 1,500 meters of water. The equipment will use hermetically sealed (canned) motors, which are more reliable and effective than today’s models’ mechanical seals, and reduce unplanned interruptions and consequent production losses.

The partnership combines Petrobras’s deep-water oil and gas distribution know-how acquired over decades of sea exploitation with Curtiss-Wright’s experience a benchmark in design and manufacture of hermetically sealed electric motors for severe service pumping applications. 

“The strategic cooperation between Petrobras and Curtiss-Wright symbolizes the combination of these solid and renowned companies’ mastery of technologies and knowledge. This new project’s success will positively impact the entire oil and gas industry, opening up new and better production opportunities,” said Petrobras’s Engineering, Technology, and Innovation Director, Carlos Travassos.

“We are excited to be working collaboratively with a leading and experienced end-user of downhole pumping and mudline boosting systems,” said Lynn Bamford, chair and CEO of Curtiss-Wright Corporation.

“These efforts will allow us to apply our proven canned motor technology expertise to this adjacent market, thereby enabling an all-electric subsea production system, while providing an opportunity to bring tremendous value to Petrobras,” added Bamford.

PUMPING SYSTEM

In pumping systems used to produce oil and natural gas, pumping machines serve to add the energy to the reservoir fluid so it can rise up to the production platform under higher flowrates compared to the ones without such addition of energy.

The pumps available on the market today have an average life of roughly three years, and after that, each change costs up to $70 million. This new technology is expected to last twice as long, at least six years, cutting down costs and boosting improving reliability.

“This new pumping system is a pioneer in the market. There are similar motors, including Curtiss-Wright’s, but this may be the first sealless mudline pump to process oil. Petrobras is proud to help develop such a technology, which will allow us to operate better and profit more,” said Petrobras Director Travassos.

Additionally, the specialists of Petrobras and Curtiss-Wright are studying an evolution of the prototype under development — five times more powerful. This more advanced version will have a life of at least ten years, with one machine capable of pumping two wells or more simultaneously while reducing costs and increasing productivity.

Petrobras explores, produces, and sells oil and gas in Brazil and internationally. The company operates through three segments: exploration and production; refining, transportation and marketing; and gas and power. The exploration and production segment explores, develops, and produces crude oil, natural gas liquids, and natural gas primarily for supplies to the domestic refineries. The refining, transportation and marketing segment engages in the refining, logistics, transport, acquisition, and exports of crude oil; and production of fertilizers, as well as holding interests in petrochemical companies. The gas and power segment is involved in the logistic and trading of natural gas and electricity; transportation and trading of LNG; generation of electricity through thermoelectric power plants; renewable energy businesses; low carbon services; and natural gas processing business, as well as production of biodiesel and its co-products. The company also engages in prospecting, drilling, refining, processing, trading, and transporting crude oil from producing onshore and offshore oil fields, and shale or other rocks, as well as oil products, natural gas, and other liquid hydrocarbons. In addition, it engages in research, development, production, transport, distribution, and trading of energy.

Curtiss-Wright is a global integrated business that provides highly engineered products, solutions, and services mainly to aerospace & defense markets, as well as critical technologies in demanding commercial power, process, and industrial markets. They leverage a workforce of approximately 8,600 highly skilled employees who develop, design, and build the best engineered solutions to the markets they serve. Building on the heritage of Glenn Curtiss and the Wright brothers, Curtiss-Wright, headquartered in Davidson, North Carolina, has a long tradition of providing innovative solutions through trusted customer relationships.

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