FPSO Cidade de Ilhabela from SBM Offshore N.V. - 150,000 barrels per day for Brazil’s deepwater fields

Reviewed: ad hoc news Accessory & Components desk. Edited and checked on 2026-06-24, 07:45. Details in the imprint.

FPSO Cidade de Ilhabela looms on the Atlantic horizon like a small city, floodlights reflecting off the swells as helicopters thrum overhead and cranes creak softly in the sea air. On board, valves hiss, steel decks vibrate under heavy pumps, and digital panels glow in the control room.

How Ilhabela processes the flow

FPSO Cidade de Ilhabela is a floating production, storage and offloading unit designed for up to 150,000 barrels of oil per day and 6 million cubic meters of gas compression in the Santos Basin pre-salt cluster. The official SBM Offshore fleet profile lists these nameplate capacities.

The vessel can store around 1.6 million barrels of crude in its hull, which started life as a converted VLCC tanker before extensive topside integration. This storage buffer allows stable production even when shuttle tankers are delayed by weather.

Pre-salt field workhorse for Petrobras

The Ilhabela unit works for Petrobras under a long-term lease and operate contract on the Sapinhoá field in the BM-S-9 block of the Santos Basin offshore Brazil. SBM Offshore announced first oil in November 2014.

For Bernard van Leggelo, SBM Offshore Brazil country manager, the unit embodies the company’s deepwater strategy, with subsea wells tied back to the floating plant through a complex web of risers and umbilicals. He has described Ilhabela as a core contributor to the company’s lease revenues in Brazil.

Topside modules and power

The topsides of FPSO Cidade de Ilhabela weigh around 23,000 tons and host gas treatment, compression, water injection and power generation modules. SBM Offshore notes a water injection capacity of 180,000 barrels per day.

Walking along the deck, engineers pass under dense pipe racks where insulation feels coarse to the touch and process heat radiates into the humid air. Turbine exhaust hums steadily, setting a constant background vibration through the steel structure.

Designed for the Santos Basin

The unit is spread-moored in about 2,140 meters of water, with mooring lines linking it to the seabed through suction piles adapted to pre-salt soil conditions. According to SBM Offshore, Ilhabela connects to 17 production and injection wells.

Petrobras configured the Sapinhoá development as a deepwater hub, so stable uptime on Ilhabela translates directly into national output figures for Brazil. For operators on the night shift, the glowing flare and radar echoes of incoming supply vessels are routine sights.

Where Ilhabela stands in the fleet

CEO Bruno Chabas regularly highlights the Brazilian FPSO fleet, including Ilhabela, as a backbone of SBM Offshore’s Lease and Operate segment in company presentations. These long-term contracts typically run for 20 to 25 years, with inflation-linked day rates where applicable.

Within SBM’s portfolio, Cidade de Ilhabela sits alongside larger units like Sepetiba and Mero projects, but still contributes meaningful capacity and steady cash flow thanks to its mature operation phase.

Company context and share listing

For SBM Offshore N.V., FPSO Cidade de Ilhabela illustrates how converted VLCCs paired with large topsides can serve complex pre-salt fields over decades while generating predictable lease income. The company is listed on Euronext Amsterdam, and the SBM Offshore N.V. share price trades there in euros under ISIN NL0000360618.

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