NYK Confirms Participation in Fourth FPSO Project for Petrobras in Brazil

Dec. 13, 2019

NYK, together with Mitsubishi Corporation (MC), has entered into a joint venture with SBM Offshore N.V. (SBM), for the 22.5-year charter, operation, and maintenance of a floating production, storage, and offloading (FPSO) unit* to operate in the Mero oil field** off the Brazilian coast for Petróleo Brasileiro S.A.

NYK will provide personnel to participate in the engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) phase of the FPSO for the first time to expand the company’s specialized skills in the new field. NYK will also be involved in the operation of the unit, as is the case with the three FPSO projects in which NYK is currently participating.

After construction of the hull and installation of topside modules, the unit will be named “FPSO Sepetiba.” Delivery of the FPSO is expected in 2022.

In accordance with its medium-term management plan “Staying Ahead 2022 with Digitalization and Green,” the NYK Group continues to take advantage of its accruing expertise in the offshore oil and gas industry, where continued growth is expected, for the company’s participation in this long-term charter business.

Outline of FPSO
Oil production capacity 180,000 bbl/day
Gas production capacity 12 million cubic meters / day
Oil storage capacity 1.4 million bbl
Water injection capacity 250,000 bbl/day
Mooring type Spread mooring
Participation percentage SBM 64.5% MC 20% NYK 15.5%
Charter period 22.5 years


Image of FPSO (Cidade de Saquarema). Copyright SBM Offshore.

* An FPSO unit is a ship-shaped offshore installation that produces crude oil by separating solids, water, and gases from liquid drawn from reservoirs beneath the seabed and storing it until it is offloaded to shuttle tankers or export tankers.

** Mero field: An offshore oil field located 180 kilometers off the coast of Rio de Janeiro in waters 2,000 meters deep in the area of a pre-salt field. (Beneath a salt layer, the oil is about 5,000 meters under the seabed.) Mero is owned by a consortium comprising Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. (40%), Shell Brasil Petroleo LTDA (20%), Total E&P do Brasil LTDA (20%), CNOOC Petroleum Brasil Ltda (10%), and CNODC Brasil Petroleo e Gas LTDA (10%).

Mitsubishi Corporation
Head office: Tokyo
Representative: Takehiko Kakiuchi, President and CEO

SBM Offshore
Head office: Netherlands
Representative: Bruno Chabas, Managing Director and CEO

NYK Group, press release