‘Extremely encouraging’: BP Brazil on track for appraisal work at largest find in 25 years

BP has set out plans to return to testing its Brazilian discovery, Bumerangue, in early 2027. It also downplayed concerns around the find’s CO2 content.

The BP Brazil find has around 1,000 metres of gross hydrocarbon column, it said. Of this, around 100 metres is gross oil column and the other 900 metres is gross rich gas-condensate.

The company said it has been carrying out laboratory testing and other analyses into the fluid characteristics and gas rations. It expects it will be able to estimate Bumerangue’s volumes in due course.

It is working on appraisal plans, which are subject to regulatory approval for the discovery, in the pre-salt Santos Basin.

BP said that, given the presence of liquids throughout the column, “the high-quality rock properties observed and bp’s extensive technology and deepwater developments experience”, it believes it can manage the CO2 in the reservoir.

“We are still in the exploration phase for Bumerangue, however, initial results and analysis are extremely encouraging as they indicate a very large hydrocarbon column and a significant volume of liquids in the reservoir,” said executive VP for production Gordon Birrell.

The company has put together a team for the development, he said. It is “accelerating work on proposed appraisal activities and potential development concepts, which will include the potential for an early production system”.

Bumerangue is one of 12 discoveries BP has made this year. It has also made finds offshore in the US and Namibia, with Eni.

Birrell noted the company had also started up six major projects this year, the most recent of which was Murlach.

Gordon Birrell, bp’s executive vice president for production & operations said: “2025 has seen significant strategic progress across bp’s Upstream with record plant reliability, six major project start-ups, five more sanctioned and a string of exploration discoveries including Bumerangue.

CO₂ challenge

The company announced success at the 1-BP-13-SPS exploration well in August. It is 404 km offshore in 2,372 metres of water. The well reached a total depth of 5,855 metres. BP holds 100% of the block, while Pré-Sal Petróleo is the state-backed manager for the area.

The company has said the BP Brazil find is its largest in 25 years. This puts the discovery on a par with Shah Deniz, in Azerbaijan, and Kashagan, in Kazakhstan.

CO2 levels have been a problem for Petrobras and others in operations offshore Brazil. The NOC is the largest reinjector of CO2 in the world. In 2024, it injected more than 14 million tonnes of the gas.

The CO2 problem is a particular challenge in the Santos Basin. A 2022 paper found that a number of reservoirs in the pre-salt had CO2 levels of more than 40%.