Equinor Awards Bacalhau Drilling and Well Services Contracts

November 14, 2020 | Oil & Gas | Energy Facts Staff Writer | 4min

Equinor has, on behalf of the partners ExxonMobil and Petrogal Brasil, awarded Baker Hughes, Halliburton and Schlumberger contracts for drilling and well services on the Bacalhau field in Brazil.

The total value of the three contracts is estimated at USD 455 million. The contracts have a firm period of 4 years and two 2-year options.

“The awards build further on our positive cooperation experience with the three selected suppliers in our projects worldwide. They will be essential to ensure safe and efficient drilling and well operations on the Bacalhau field,” says Peggy Krantz-Underland, Equinor’s chief procurement officer.

The contract scope awarded to Baker Hughes covers drilling services and completion. Halliburton’s scope of work will include intervention services and liner hanger, while Schlumberger will deliver wireline services.

The awards are expected to make a significant contribution to local content in Brazil. The average local content of the three contracts, considering the majority of services will be performed in Brazil, is estimated at 74%.

“Brazil is a core area for Equinor, and Bacalhau is an important asset in the Brazilian pre-salt Santos area. Together with our partners, we are currently maturing the project towards a final investment decision (FID) which is planned in 2021,” says Trond Bokn, acting senior vice president for project development in Equinor.

Earlier this year, the partnership entered into front end engineering and design (FEED) contracts with early commitments and pre-investments for the Bacalhau field with MODEC for FPSO and Subsea Integration Alliance (SIA) for SURF. The awards have an option for the execution phase under a lump sum turnkey contract setup which includes engineering, procurement, construction and installation (EPCI) for the entire SURF and FPSO scopes.

Partners in Bacalhau: Equinor 40 % (operator), ExxonMobil 40 %, Petrogal Brasil 20 % and Pré-sal Petróleo SA (PPSA, non-investor Government Agency).