France's TotalEnergies plans to develop Gran Morgu field offshore Suriname: CEO

France's TotalEnergies expects to give the green light to development of the Gran Morgu field off the coast of Suriname, with the project targeting 220,000 b/d worth of crude output, CEO Patrick Pouyanné said Sept. 23.

"I would like to announce today that very soon we will have a new project offshore Suriname," Pouyanné said at the ROG.e oil and natural gas conference in Rio de Janeiro. TotalEnergies expects to install a floating production, storage and offloading vessel, or FPSO, capable of producing 220,000 b/d, the executive added.

Brazilian state-led oil company Petrobras could potentially participate in the project after Pouyanné and Petrobras CEO Magda Chambriard met to discuss potential opportunities in the Atlantic Basin, Pouyanné said. Chambriard has previously said that Petrobras would like to return to international exploration and production in order to reposition Petrobras' reserves.

On the other side of the Atlantic Ocean, TotalEnergies is also evaluating opportunities offshore Angola, Namibia and South Africa, Pouyanné said.

"If Petrobras is willing to join us internationally, that would be good," Pouyanné said. "We are operators, and we can show them how we operate internationally."

TotalEnergies also holds significant stakes in the Brazilian subsalt frontier, including Atapu, Lapa, Sepia and Mero in the Libra production sharing area.

"We have an extraordinary portfolio of giant oil assets," Pouyanné said. The fields currently have seven FPSOs in operation, with that number expected to rise to 11 FPSOs by 2030.

"We are more and more confident in the subsalt's potential and are ready to do more in the future," Pouyanné said.

Reducing emissions

TotalEnergies also sees Brazil as a key player in the company's investments in renewable energy, where the company is part of a joint-venture with onshore wind producer Casa dos Ventos. TotalEnergies invested about $764 million in the joint venture, which has projects totaling about 12 GW of generation capacity.

TotalEnergies wants about 40% of its portfolio in oil production, 40% in gas production and 20% in electricity production by 2030, Pouyanné said. TotalEnergies is dedicating about $5 billion of its investment portfolio toward renewables to meet the target, according to the CEO.

"Brazil is a superb country for renewables," Pouyanné said. "It has one of the best mixes, with all this hydropower, incredible onshore wind, so it has all the natural resources."

In addition, Pouyanné sees incredible potential for energy companies to invest in reforestation in the Amazon.

"Brazil has a huge potential carbon sink in the Amazon," Pouyanné said. TotalEnergies estimated costs to invest in reforestation at about $15/metric ton. Companies, however, need clear and consistent regulatory frameworks to create a solid foundation for investments, according to the executive.

"We need absolutely certifiable carbon credits," Pouyanné said. "We are ready to invest."