BG conducts first oil transshipment at Rio port

OREANDA-NEWS. August 30, 2016. Shell subsidary BG launched its first crude transshipment operation at the Acu port in Rio de Janeiro state, marking the start of commercial operations at Acu's offshore oil terminal.

"Transshipment involving the Nova Spirit and SKS Sinni vessels is taking place normally and all safety requirements are adopted by the terminal. Both vessels are expected to be unmoored within 36 hours," US-led port operator Prumo said.

The Acu offshore oil terminal is equipped to handle Suezmax vessels, but Prumo is working toward accommodating Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCCs) by the end of 2017.

In June 2015, BG and Prumo signed a 20-year transshipment agreement covering the use of a specially designed terminal for 200,000 b/d of ship-to-ship operations.

BG has an option to increase transshipment operations to 320,000 b/d.

A lack of suitable options and regulatory hurdles in Brazil had forced BG to carry out ship-to-ship operations of Lula, Iracema, and Sapinhoa sub-salt crude through a terminal in La Paloma, Uruguay.

BG was an early mover in Brazil's sub-salt patch and its current net production in Brazil is around 195,000 b/d, mainly light crude from sub-salt fields in the Santos basin.

Prumo did not disclose the volume of the transshipment now in process or its destination.

In October 2013, US investment fund EIG paid 1.3bn real (\\$596mn) for the controlling stake in Prumo, then known as LLX.