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PRIO invests in research, development and innovation to increase efficiency in mature fields
PRIO is intensifying its investments in research and innovation to face the challenges of production in mature fields. In the first half of 2024, the company signed three new strategic partnerships with PUC-Rio, Universidade Federal Fluminense (UFF) and the startup Wikki. These collaborations focus on enhanced recovery and seismic inversion techniques to optimize production.
Francilmar Fernandes, PRIO’s Chief Operating Officer, highlights the company’s dynamic approach: “We are open to learning and seeking the best solutions on the market with a focus on high performance and results. If necessary, we test, promote development and do things differently. Our search is for practical applications to solve the problems inherent in the operation of mature fields – ranging from reservoir management to corrosion treatment and risk management. We want, among other things, to increase the recovery factor of the reservoirs and increase production, always with a focus on safety.”
The partnership with Wikki, for example, explores the impact of the composition of salts in water injected into different lithologies (rocks), to optimize oil recovery at the ideal concentration. The collaboration with the Laboratory of Micro-hydrodynamics and Flow in Porous Media (LMMP) at PUC-Rio aims to study the use of micro emulsions in water injection as an advanced recovery method for two of the operated fields. With UFF, PRIO will develop its own seismic inversion software, adapted to the specific needs of its operation in Albacora Leste.
“The R,D&I structure we set up was created with a focus on solving real, high-impact problems at PRIO. As a result, the definitions of our lines of research are ‘alive’ and readjusted every quarter as new challenges arise. Some are already starting to be well designed, others we are gradually giving shape to,” concludes Arthur de Almeida, reservoir engineer and focal point of R,D&I at PRIO.