Singapore’s BW Offshore will bank $50m from selling a veteran floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) unit to sister operation BW Energy.
The 90,000-bpd FPSO Polvo (built 1981) is needed to develop the new Maromba field off Brazil.
Oslo-listed BW Offshore said red tape in Brazil forced the sale, which will be completed no later than 24 July, 2023.
If the transaction is finalised earlier than that, BW Energy will pay $30m on the transfer date, with the remaining $20m provided as a seller's credit by BW Offshore.
An independent third-party valuation of the FPSO concluded that the sales price is within a fair market value range, BW Offshore said.
The FPSO Polvo vessel recently ended its charter on the Polvo field in Brazil and is currently in lay-up in Dubai.
BW Offshore would normally have signed a lease and operate contract for the unit with the BW Group affiliate.
But the company said that the decision to sell was due to regulatory challenges under Brazilian-related and associated-party legislation.
BW Energy said on Friday it has decided to proceed with the phased Maromba development.
The plan is based on an initial drilling campaign of three wells, with the first oil due in 2025.
A second campaign is also envisaged, involving three more wells in 2027.
Liquidity boost
BW Offshore has been boosting liquidity in recent months through FPSO sales.
The 138,000-dwt BW Cidade de Sao Vicente (built 1976) was sold for scrap at a price of $12.8m in February.
And the month before, the 97,000-dwt BW Joko Tole (built 1988) was acquired by Indonesian buyers Bahari Inti Tanker and Cahaya Haluan Pasifik.
The deal freed more than $50m of liquidity, comprising net sale proceeds of $42.5m and the release of $9m in working capital.
