By Brazil Stock Guide – French energy giant SLB (NYSE: SLB) has signed a contract worth more than R$1.5 billion ($300 million) with Petrobras (NYSE: PBR) to implement Brazil’s first electric well-completion technology. The project, expected to begin next year, marks a milestone in offshore operations and deepens the partnership between the two companies.
As reported by O Estado de S. Paulo, SLB’s Brazil president Thomas Filiponi said the innovation will replace traditional hydraulic systems, enhancing efficiency, precision, and real-time monitoring in the Búzios field, part of Brazil’s pre-salt region. “Real-time flow control is a game changer. Decisions that used to take days can now be made in minutes,” Filiponi told the newspaper.
The five-year, R$400 million contract is part of the so-called “Búzios wave 3,” covering platforms Búzios 9, 10, and 11. These wells are being pre-equipped for future FPSO (floating production storage and offloading) units to accelerate production once operations start.
Expanding in the Equatorial Margin
SLB also plays a leading role in drilling the Morpho well in Brazil’s Equatorial Margin, one of the country’s most promising exploration frontiers. “Brazil is a very strategic region for SLB, not only because of the size of the projects but also their complexity,” Filiponi said. The executive noted that SLB’s technology enables vertical, deviated, and horizontal drilling with real-time data assessments.
Following recent environmental licensing approvals, SLB expects to drill at least three additional wells in the region. Filiponi described the development as “a unique opportunity” for Brazil’s oil and gas sector.
Reviving Mature Fields
The company has also secured a Petrobras tender to apply advanced 3D and 4D seismic imaging in the Campos and Santos basins. The goal is to improve subsoil mapping and optimize recovery from declining fields, including the once-dominant Tupi field, now producing around 780,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day, down from 832,000 a year ago.
In the Santos Basin, SLB’s project covers 950 square kilometers at a depth of 5,000 meters, aiming to lift production back toward the 1 million boe/d mark.
Focus on Energy Transition and Carbon Capture
Overseeing SLB’s operations in Brazil and Uruguay, Filiponi highlighted new opportunities in clean energy and carbon capture. “Carbon capture and storage, hydrogen, energy storage, geothermal solutions, and critical minerals are our five key service fronts,” he said.
SLB is already advancing a carbon storage project in Brazil’s Mato Grosso state, drilling injection and monitoring wells in Sorriso and Querência, supported by geological and geophysical studies to ensure traceability and precision in carbon accounting.
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