Petrobras announces that it started production today (Dec. 2) at the St. Malo field, located about 450 km south of New Orleans, Louisiana, USA. Water depth is about 2,100 meters in the Walker Ridge area, in the Gulf of Mexico, and reservoir depth is 8,077 meters.

Discovered in 2003, St. Malo comprises a completion system connected to a semisubmersible production unit. The Jack/St. Malo platform is shared by the St. Malo and Jack fields and can produce 170,000 barrels of oil and 1.2 million cubic meters of gas per day, with possibility for future expansion. It is the largest semi-submersible platform in displacement installed in the American portion of the Gulf of Mexico and was designed to operate for at least 30 years.

Petrobras in the Gulf of Mexico

Petrobras is a leader in deepwater operations because of its experience and technology it has developed in its offshore operations in Brazil. St. Malo is the third field in ultradeep waters at which Petrobras operates in the Gulf of Mexico, and is located in the Lower Tertiary geological strata (formed between 23 and 65 million years ago).

Also in the Lower Tertiary, Petrobras operates the Cascade and Chinook fields, in production since 2012, with vessel platform BW Pioneer, the first FPSO (floating oil production, storage and offloading unit) approved for operation in the American portion of the Gulf of Mexico. In addition, Petrobras holds stakes in the Tiber, Lucius, Hadrian South, and Hadrian North fields, all with significant oil and gas reserves.

About Petrobras

We have upwards of 100 production platforms, 16 refineries, 30,000 kilometers of pipelines and more than 6,000 service stations. Our proved reserves are around 14 billion barrels of oil, a figure expected to double in the next few years. With the discovery of oil and gas in the pre-salt region, Brazil may become the world's fourth biggest oil producer in 2030.

We have built a track record of overcoming challenges since 1953, when the company was created. The main one was developing technology to explore and produce oil in deep and ultra-deep waters, where upwards of 90% of our reserves are nestled. With innovation and daringness, we are now the Brazilian company that makes the applies for the most patents in Brazil and abroad.