Equinor (EQNR) Advances Major Offshore Gas Project in Brazil
Equinor ASA EQNR plans to advance with the full-scale development of two offshore gas and condensate fields in Brazil’s Campos basin, as they have been deemed suitable for commercial production.
The two deposits are situated within the BM-C-33 concession, which is 200 kilometers away from Rio de Janeiro. Within this concession, there are reserves of natural gas and condensate, with recoverable volumes estimated to exceed one billion barrels of oil equivalent.
Equinor operates the BM-C-33 concession with a 35% interest. The company filed declarations of commercial viability and development proposals for the deposits with the Brazil market regulator ANP. The suggested names for the fields are Raia Manta and Raia Pintada.
The development marks the first project in Brazil to treat gas offshore and will be directly linked to the national gas grid without additional onshore processing.
The fields align with Equinor’s strategy in a nation where it has a robust record. The company plans to bolster its presence in the nation. With its partners, Equinor will leverage additional expertise to guarantee the safe and efficient implementation of the development projects.
The development plan includes a floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) unit, which has a gas production capacity of 16 million cubic meters per day. Production is scheduled to commence in 2028, and the FPSO will be provided by Japan-based floater specialist Modec.
Raia Manta and Raia Pintada are significant natural gas fields, which will be pivotal in further developing the Brazil gas market. The fields are expected to necessitate $9 billion in capital investments. Once operational, they have the potential to fulfill 15% of Brazil’s total gas demand.
The project will meet stricter environmental standards. The expected carbon emissions per unit of energy produced for these two fields are estimated to be very low, at less than 6 kilograms per barrel. This will be achieved by using a special type of turbine on the FPSO, which efficiently captures and utilizes excess heat.
Price Performance
Shares of EQNR have outperformed the industry in the past six months. The stock has gained 17.1% compared with the industry’s 10% growth.
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Zacks Rank & Stocks to Consider
Equinor currently carries a Zack Rank #3 (Hold).
Investors interested in the energy sector might look at the following companies that presently flaunt a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
USA Compression Partners, LP USAC is one of the largest independent natural gas compression service providers across the United States in terms of fleet horsepower.
USA Compression Partners has witnessed upward earnings estimate revisions for 2023 and 2024 in the past 30 days. The consensus estimate for USAC’s 2023 and 2024 earnings per share is pegged at 30 cents and 58 cents, respectively.
Helix Energy Solutions Group, Inc. HLX is an international offshore energy company that provides specialty services to the offshore energy industry, with a focus on their growing well intervention and robotics operations. HLX has witnessed upward earnings estimate revisions for 2023 and 2024 over the past 60 days.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Helix Energy’s 2023 and 2024 earnings per share is pegged at 48 cents and 87 cents, respectively. HLX currently has a Zacks Style Score of A for Momentum.
Pioneer Natural Resources Company PXD is an explorer and producer of oil, natural gas and natural gas liquid. The upstream energy player’s debt to capitalization has been persistently lower than the industry over the past few years, reflecting considerably lower debt exposure.
Pioneer has witnessed upward earnings estimate revisions for 2023 and 2024 in the past 30 days. The consensus estimate for PXD’s 2023 and 2024 earnings per share is pegged at $20.60 and $24.20, respectively.
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