Norwegian services specialist Subsea7 has secured a major contract valued at over $1.25 billion from Petrobras to deliver a comprehensive subsea umbilicals, risers, and flowlines (SURF) system for the Sepia-2 pre-salt development in the Santos basin offshore Brazil.

Contract Award and Scope

The contract award follows Subsea7's successful bid, which was the lowest in the tender process, defeating competitors Saipem, Mota-Engil, and Allseas. The workscope is extensive, covering the engineering, procurement, fabrication, installation, and pre-commissioning of the SURF solution. This includes infrastructure for 17 development wells—two of which are from the existing Sepia-1 project—along with one gas export line and a total of 18 risers.

Project Execution and Timeline

Project management and engineering activities will begin immediately at Subsea7's offices in Rio de Janeiro, Paris, and Sutton. Offshore installation operations are scheduled to commence in 2029. This timeline positions the SURF work to be completed one year before the planned first oil from the P-85 floating production, storage, and offloading (FPSO) vessel at the Sepia field.

Strategic Significance and Location

This contract is strategically important as it strengthens Subsea7's project portfolio in Brazil and reinforces its long-standing relationship with Petrobras in the pre-salt region. The Sepia field itself is situated approximately 280 kilometers southeast of the Rio de Janeiro coast in water depths of 2,170 meters.

Historical Context

The Sepia-2 award marks the sixth major SURF contract signed between Subsea7 and Petrobras for Brazil's pre-salt province. Previous collaborative projects include providing subsea solutions for the Mero-3, Mero-4, Buzios-8, Buzios-9, and Buzios-11 developments.