Saipem Going Strong in Brazil and Expecting more Growth

Eni owns 43% of Saipem, which is organised in three Business Units: Offshore, Onshore and Drilling, with various activities in remote areas and deepwater. Saipem is also specialized in providing engineering, procurement, project management and construction services.

In 2010 Saipem was awarded by Petrobras the EPIC contract for the P55-SCR project, encompassing the engineering, procurement, transportation and offshore installation of flowlines and risers serving the semi P-55 to be installed in the Roncador field, in the Campos Basin, off the coast of the Rio de Janeiro State, in Brazil. For this contract Saipem will be working with companies specialized in subsea construction, such as Advanced Subsea and others, while utilizing various subsea support equipment, such as AUVs and ROVs.

Saipem has been active in Brazil for many years with a list of successful projects, such as for the transport and installation of the offshore structures related to the Petrobras Mexilhao field development, in the Santos Basin, located about 140 km from the shore of the State of Sao Paulo. The contract covered the transport and installation of the jacket, piles and topside modules of the PMXL-1 platform, weighing about 24,000 tons. Saipem 7000 was the vessel that carried out the work, which will took place in 2009.

Saipem has also been active in the provision and management of an FPSO for the development of the Golfinho field Module 2, located in 1,400 meters of water in the Espirito Santo Basin, since2005. The contract, which has a total value of approximately US$ 600 million, is for 9 years plus three one-year extension options. Saipem converted an oil tanker into an FPSO with a storage capacity of 1,600,000 barrels and an oil production capacity of 100,000 barrels per day. The FPSO was delivered in early 2007.  7% of the construction phase investments and 85% of the operational phase investments were made in Brazil. The Golfinho Module 2 FPSO was the first contract won by Saipem on a standalone basis in the high growth leased FPSO market.

With the steady growth of the Brazilian O&G market it is expected that Saipem will increase its physical and operational presence in Brazil. With all the hype going on in the deepwater frontier, subsea companies in Brazil may expect a significant amount of new business coming from Saipem as it receives more contracts from O&G players. With the present conflict in Libya it can also be expected that ENI, part owner of Saipem will also look to participate in the upcoming round of oilfield tenders in Brazil, with an eye at acquiring some pre-salt and other deepwater exploration rights.

Claudio Paschoa

FPSO Cidade de Vitoria

Saipem 7000

Brutus Pipe Connection System

Innovator250 ROV