By Brazil Stock Guide – PRIO reported preliminary April production of 173,416 barrels of oil equivalent per day, up about 11.6% from the 155,355 boepd average in the first quarter, marking a stronger operational month for Brazil’s largest independent oil and gas producer. The main driver was the Valente cluster, which includes Frade and Wahoo, where oil production reached 59,653 barrels per day and exported gas added another 4,696 boepd.
The number reinforces the central investment thesis around PRIO: growth is increasingly tied to redeveloping mature assets and quickly integrating new production. In April, the third producing well at Wahoo began output on April 6, materially lifting the Valente cluster. The fourth well, however, was pushed to mid-May after damage to the crane on the vessel responsible for launching the umbilical, showing that execution risk remains part of the story.
Wahoo effect
The jump at Valente more than compensated for weaker production elsewhere. Albacora Leste produced 22,491 barrels per day of oil in April, below the first-quarter average of 26,236 barrels per day, after a turbine failure and an interruption at well ABL-68 caused by hydrate formation. Cluster Bravo, which includes Polvo and TBMT, produced 14,463 barrels per day, affected by a stoppage at well OGX-44HP due to an electrical submersible pump failure.
Peregrino, where PRIO reports an 80% share, also declined to 72,001 barrels per day in April, from a first-quarter average of 80,343 barrels per day. Production there was affected by a temporary failure in the multiphase pump on platform C and by the stoppage of well C-26, also due to an electrical submersible pump failure. The workover was completed at the end of April, according to the company.
Volume versus sales
Oil sales reached 4.79 million barrels in April, below the 6.23 million barrels sold in March, but still a relevant monthly volume. Peregrino accounted for the largest share, with 1.87 million barrels, followed by Valente with 1.32 million barrels, Albacora Leste with 971,874 barrels and Bravo with 632,098 barrels.
The April data gives PRIO a cleaner growth headline after a first quarter already marked by high production levels. But it also highlights the operational sensitivity of the portfolio: Wahoo is adding scale, while mature fields still require maintenance, workovers and fast problem-solving. For investors, the message is simple: PRIO’s growth story is working — but it remains an offshore execution story, not just a production curve.