AI asset management lands on Prio's FPSOs in the Campos Basin
Prio signed a deal with Shape Digital to deploy the Lighthouse AI platform across the Albacora Leste, Frade, and Tubarão Martelo fields in Brazil's Campos Basin. These units operate on FPSOs with combined processing capacity of up to 380,000 barrels per day.
The goal is simple: fewer unplanned shutdowns, tighter maintenance windows, and safer operations at scale. According to the companies, Lighthouse targets around a 15% reduction in unwanted operational shutdowns while optimizing maintenance spend.
What Lighthouse brings to operations
- An offshore-focused library with 200+ AI prediction models and engineering equations for condition monitoring.
- Early failure detection so teams can plan work orders, parts, and permits before issues go critical.
- Fewer firefights onboard and more time on planned, high-value work.
How this changes day-to-day offshore work
Expect a move from time-based maintenance to exception-based workflows. Crews act on model-driven alerts, not hunches.
- Shift major equipment to predictive routines (compressors, turbines, separators, power generation).
- Stage critical spares based on lead time and risk, not blanket stocking.
- Shorten intervention duration with earlier diagnostics and clear job plans.
- Reduce deferrals by aligning campaigns with the production plan and weather windows.
Data, integration, and readiness
Lighthouse will lean on historian data, CMMS records, and engineering rules. The value depends on clean signals and tight integration with your planning cycle.
- Standardize tag hierarchies and verify sensor health (calibration, drift, noise).
- Map failure modes to equipment classes and link to work templates in your CMMS.
- Confirm bandwidth and buffering offshore for reliable streaming or batch uploads.
- Set alarm thresholds, roles, and escalation paths so alerts turn into action fast.
- Build a feedback loop: technician findings feed back into model tuning.
Subsurface: AI and HPC coming online
Prio advanced AI use in reservoir and subsurface engineering with authorization from Brazil's oil regulator (ANP) to apply R&D&I clause funds. The project, estimated at 2.7 million reais, targets AI applications and high-performance computing infrastructure.
ANP's R&D&I program sets the framework for this type of investment.
2026 outlook: Wahoo tieback and production ramp
Prio plans to integrate the Wahoo field with the Frade FPSO (FPSO Valente). The tieback is expected to add about 35,000 boepd.
Company estimates point to ~200,000 boepd in mid-2026 once the project is fully online. For operations, that means higher throughput, tighter turnarounds, and stronger coordination between production, maintenance, and logistics.
KPIs to track from day one
- Unplanned deferment (bbl/day or boe/day) and its root causes.
- Prediction lead time vs. work execution time (did alerts arrive early enough?).
- MTBF/MTTR for critical equipment.
- Planned maintenance compliance and backlog age.
- Spare parts turns and stockouts on critical spares.
- Flaring and energy efficiency linked to equipment health.
Quick start checklist for operations leaders
- Nominate a cross-functional squad (ops, maintenance, reliability, data, IT/OT).
- Pick a focused pilot (e.g., gas compression train) with clear success criteria.
- Integrate with your CMMS and planning cadence so alerts trigger work orders automatically.
- Clean the data first: tag audit, sensor QA, historian gaps.
- Train crews on interpreting model outputs and documenting findings.
- Baseline downtime and costs now to prove impact in 90-180 days.
Upskilling the team
If you're building in-house capability around predictive maintenance, MLOps, or data-driven reliability, a structured path helps. See practical learning tracks by role here: AI courses by job.
Bottom line: Prio's Lighthouse rollout points to a more predictive offshore operation-fewer surprises, smarter interventions, and better alignment with production goals. The groundwork you lay now in data quality, integration, and crew training will decide how much of that 15% downtime reduction you capture.
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