Equinor, on behalf of the BM-C-33 consortium, has submitted the Declarations of Commerciality and Plans of Development for two fields in the BM-C-33 concession area offshore Brazil.

The development plans, which would require investment of around $9bn, have been submitted to the National Agency of Petroleum, Natural Gas and Biofuels.

Equinor owns 35% stake in the consortium, while other partners include Repsol Sinopec Brasil (35%) and Petrobras (30%).

In the declaration, the consortium partners recommended the names for the two areas as Raia Manta and Raia Pintada.

Located about 200km from Rio de Janeiro, in water depths up to 2900m, the BM-C-33 concession is estimated to hold more than one billion barrels of oil equivalent in recoverable oil and gas volumes.

Equinor Brazil country manager Veronica Coelho said: “The developments have the potential to meet 15% of the total Brazilian gas demand when in production. This will contribute to Brazil’s energy security and economic development, enabling significant new job opportunities at local level.”

The plans includes one floating production storage and offloading unit (FPSO) capable of processing gas and oil/condensate.

The FPSO will be equipped to produce 16 million cubic meters of gas per day (mcmd). It is expected to export an average of 14mcmd.

The processed gas will be transported via a 200km pipeline from the FPSO to Cabiúnas in Macaé, while the liquids will be shipped using shuttle tankers.

In a press statement, Petrobras said: “The BM-C-33 area is one of the main natural gas projects under development in Brazil and plays a key role in the ongoing progress of the Brazilian gas market.”

The development and operations of the two areas are expected to create up to 50,000 jobs. It is expected to start operations in 2028.

Earlier this year, Equinor and its partners awarded two contracts related to the BM-C-33 gas and condensate project to TechnipFMC and Modec.