Most of the increase in production is reinjected into wells due to the lack of drainage infrastructure; practice has grown 585% since 2010
Brazil has made a leap in natural gas production in the last 15 years. Driven by pre-salt reserves, extraction increased 138% since 2010, when it was 62.3 million m³/day (cubic meters per day). In the 1st quarter of 2024, average production was 148.7 million m³/day.
But all this gas is not enough for Brazilians. Since 2010, the effective delivery of the input to the market by oil companies only grew 37%. It turns out that most of the increase in production is reinjected into wells due to the lack of drainage infrastructure.
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A reinjection grew 585% since 2010, when 11.5 million m³/day were returned. In the 1st quarter of 2024, 80.2 million m³/day were injected. The volume actually made available to the consumer market was only 47 million m³/day.
The data are from ANP (National Petroleum, Natural Gas and Biofuels Agency) and were compiled by Power360. The historical series numbers show that reinjection soared in the country from 2015 onwards, with the start of operation of large pre-salt platforms.
In the 1st quarter of 2024, the country returned 54% of the gas produced in wells. The percentage was driven by the record 58% reinjection recorded in March due to the scheduled shutdown of part of the Route 1 gas pipeline for preventive maintenance.
With the increase in returns, only 32% of national production was delivered to the market in the 1st half of the year. The rest of the gas is burned or consumed on the platforms themselves. But these volumes have changed little in recent years. Of the total produced in 2024, burning represented 3% and internal consumption by oil companies, 11%.
Recently, the Minister of Mines and Energy, Alexandre Silveirasaid that the government wants expand access to infrastructure flow and processing to reduce gas reinjection. He promised an abundant supply of gas with this policy and with new production projects.
“We will make better use of the natural gas we produce in Brazil. It is not possible to keep reinjecting half of this precious wealth for our people. We have to have the courage to debate this thorny but essential topic. Our gas has to reach those who produce wealth and generate opportunities in Brazil”said the minister.
In Brazil, around 85% of the natural gas produced is associated with oil. This is the case with the pre-salt. In other words, both are present in reservoirs. To produce oil, companies have to extract natural gas. Oil companies are left with two options: sell the gas or reinject it.
Return is a commercial strategy of oil companies, such as Petrobras, to increase oil production. It turns out that the injection of natural gas, carbon dioxide, water and other fluids increases the pressure of the reservoirs, helping to extract the oil. The reason is that oil is more profitable than gas.
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In countries with a similar production profile to Brazil, with a predominance of associated gas, gas reinjection rates are naturally higher to help extract oil. They vary from 20% to 35%. However, the percentage in Brazil is above its peers. This is because of the lack of infrastructure.
While the country rushed to build platforms to extract pre-salt oil, it did not invest enough and in time to transport the gas. As a result, there is currently a lack of gas pipelines to take production to the market and most of what is extracted ends up returning to the wells.
There are only two routes for the flow of pre-salt natural gas production: the Route 1 and Route 2 gas pipelines, which connect the fields to the UPGNs (natural gas processing units) in Caraguatatuba (SP) and Cabiúnas (RJ). These structures play a role similar to oil refineries.
In the case of March specifically, the partial and scheduled shutdown of the Mexilhão platform for preventive maintenance also contributed to the record. This caused restrictions in the supply of gas on Route 1.
Since 2014, Petrobras has been planning the Route 3 maritime gas pipeline to expand the flow of gas production, following the increase in the supply of the input. Delays in construction caused several postponements in the expectation of completion.
The 3rd pre-salt pipeline will lead to the Gaslub Complex – formerly Comperj (Rio de Janeiro Petrochemical Complex), which was resized after Operation Lava Jato. The infrastructure should come into operation by the end of this year and will have the capacity to transport up to 18 million m³/day.
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