ENERGY
FPSOs modernize offshore energy
Next-gen vessels boost production, electrification, and global supply in the floating economy.
Ammonia FPSO. Image by SBM Offshore.
Vessel-based oil and gas production is entering a new phase. Floating Production, Storage, and Offloading units (FPSOs) are expanding in size, sophistication, and hybrid features. In 2025, global majors are sanctioning projects that merge higher output with lower emissions.
Petrobras reviews FPSO tender. In February 2025, Petrobras considered cancelling a tender from India’s Shapoorji Pallonji due to high bid costs and local-content concerns, underscoring the competitive pressures in Brazil’s pre-salt fields.
Exxon’s One Guyana FPSO sets sail. In February 2025, SBM Offshore’s One Guyana FPSO departed Singapore for ExxonMobil’s Stabroek block. The unit will produce 250,000 barrels per day, marking Exxon’s fourth FPSO in Guyana.
ABB electrifies Petrobras FPSOs. ABB announced in June 2025 it will provide electrical and automation systems for Petrobras’s P-84 and P-85 units. These FPSOs, serving Atapu and Sépia fields, will feature advanced all-electric designs to cut emissions.
SBM Offshore grows FPSO backlog. SBM’s 2024 full-year earnings confirmed continued delivery of major FPSOs like Prosperity and Almirante Tamandaré, with backlog growth tied to emission-reduction technologies.
That’s not all: analysts expect more than 20 FPSO projects to move forward globally by 2030, with Brazil and Guyana leading new deployments and electrification driving design choices.
—TFI
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