Shell invests in Gato do Mato project in Brazil’s pre-salt area

Shell Brasil Petróleo Ltda. (Shell Brasil), a subsidiary of Shell plc, has taken the Final Investment Decision (FID) for Gato do Mato, a deep-water project in the pre-salt area of the Santos Basin, offshore Brazil.

The Gato do Mato Consortium includes Shell (operator with a 50% stake), Ecopetrol (30%), TotalEnergies (20%) and Pré-Sal Petróleo S.A. (PPSA) acting as the manager of the production sharing contract (PSC), Shell said in a statement.

The development plan includes the installation of a floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel and is designed to produce up to 120,000 barrels of oil per day. Current estimated recoverable resource volumes of the Gato do Mato development are approximately 370 million barrels.

“Gato do Mato is an example of our ongoing investment in increasingly efficient projects,” said Zoë Yujnovich, Shell’s Integrated Gas and Upstream Director. “The project contributes to maintaining stable liquids production from our advantaged Upstream business, and expands our leadership as the largest foreign producer in Brazil as we continue working to provide for the world’s energy needs well into the future.”

The consortium anticipates that the Gato do Mato field will commence operations in 2029.

Located in the Santos Basin, the Gato do Mato project is a pre-salt gas-condensate discovery that covers two contiguous blocks: BM-S-54, a concession contract entered into in 2005, and Sul de Gato do Mato, a production sharing agreement obtained in 2017.

Initial operations will involve the reinjection of natural gas for reservoir pressure support, with future optionality to export gas to onshore facilities, Shell said. 

The blocks are offshore Brazil from the Rio de Janeiro coast, in water depths ranging from 1,750 to 2,050 metres. The investment in Gato do Mato is expected to generate an internal rate of return (IRR) in excess of the hurdle rate for Shell’s Upstream business.