From China to Brazil: how Petrobras’ P-84 is being built across three countries

The hull of Petrobras’ P-84 FPSO has been completed at CIMC Raffles’ yard in Yantai, China, adding another step to a construction program that spans China, Brazil and Singapore.

Petrobras awarded Seatrium the contracts for the P-84 and P-85 FPSOs, a package valued at approximately S$11 billion. Seatrium later subcontracted CIMC Raffles for the EPC of the hulls, living quarters and M15B modules of both units.

China’s participation is not new in Petrobras’ FPSO program. CIMC Raffles previously delivered the P-71 hull, supplied hull blocks for P-78 and subsequently secured work related to P-80, P-83, P-84 and P-85.

For P-84, fabrication is distributed across multiple locations. The project includes a 20% Brazilian local-content requirement, while the hull and accommodation structures built in China are scheduled to move to Singapore for topsides integration and commissioning before the FPSO is prepared for deployment in Brazil.

The unit will have capacity to produce 225,000 barrels of oil per day and process 10 million cubic meters of gas per day. By comparison, P-70, currently operating at Atapu, has capacity for 150,000 barrels per day and 6 million cubic meters of gas per day.

P-84 will also incorporate Petrobras’ All Electric configuration. ABB says the design includes 165 MW of power-generation capacity, while major rotating equipment such as compressors will be electrically driven.

Petrobras expects the combination of the All Electric concept and other energy-efficiency technologies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions intensity by around 30% per barrel of oil equivalent.

China’s role also reflects the scale of its shipbuilding industry. According to UNCTAD, the country accounted for 54.57% of global shipbuilding output by gross tonnage in 2024.

P-84 will become the second production unit at Atapu. Petrobras currently expects Atapu 2 to start production in 2029.