Route 1 Gas Pipeline

This article is part of the Global Fossil Infrastructure Tracker, a project of Global Energy Monitor.

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The Route 1 Gas Pipeline, also known by its Portuguese name Gasoduto Rota 1, is an operating natural gas pipeline off the Atlantic coast of southeastern Brazil.

Location

The pipeline runs west from the Tupi oil and gas field off the coast of Rio de Janeiro state to the Mexilhão platform off the coast of São Paulo state, then continues north to the Monteiro Lobato Gas Treatment Unit at Caraguatatuba, São Paulo state.

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Project Details

• Operator: Petrobras
• Parent Company:
  • Tupi-Mexilhão section: Petrobras (65%), Shell (25%), Galp (10%)
  • Mexilhão-Monteiro Lobato section: Petrobras (100%)
• Current capacity: 3.65 billion cubic meters per year
• Length: 223 miles / 359 km
• Diameter: 18 inches, 34 inches
• Status: Operating
• Start Year: 2011

Background

In September 2011, Petrobras announced completion of the Lula-Mexilhão pipeline, a 216-kilometer pipeline designed to transfer natural gas from the Tupi field (also known as the Lula field), 250km off the coast of Rio de Janeiro state, to the Mexilhão platform, a fixed gas production platform 160km off the coast of São Paulo state. At Mexilhão, the Lula-Mexilhão pipeline connects to a second section of pipeline running north to the Monteiro Lobato Gas Treatment Unit at Caraguatatuba, São Paulo state, where gas is fed into Brazil's domestic natural gas distribution network. The Route 1 pipeline also interconnects with Petrobras's Route 2 Gas Pipeline, which has been operating since 2016, bringing another 4.75 million cubic meters of natural gas annually from the Tupi field to the Cabiúnas Gas Treatment Terminal in Macaé, Rio de Janeiro state.

The Tupi field is located in the Santos basin, in a geological formation known as the 'pre-salt' layer, below 2126m (6975ft) of water and 2791m (9156ft) of soil, rock and salt.

In September 2019, press reports indicated that Petrobras, in consultation with pipeline co-owners Shell and Galp, was studying a potential sale of the Route 1 pipeline together with its two other offshore pipelines (Route 2 and Route 3). In June 2021, Petrobras confirmed that it had begun studying divestment options for all three pipelines, and would keep the market informed of future developments.

Technical description

The pipeline consists of two sections. The first, running between the Tupi field and the Mexilhão platform, is 216 km (134 mi) long. The second, running from the Mexilhão Platform to the Monteiro Lobato Gas Treatment Unit, is 143 km long. Pipeline diameter ranges from 18 to 34 inches. The pipeline, operated by Petrobras, has the capacity to carry 10 million cubic meters of natural gas per day, or 3.65 billion cubic meters per year.