License for oil in Foz do Amazonas is advanced – 03/27/2023 – Environment

License for oil in Foz do Amazonas is advanced – 03/27/2023 – Environment


The licensing process for Petrobras to drill an oil well in block 59, in the region of the mouth of the Amazon River, is at an advanced stage of processing. After submitting environmental studies, the emergency plan and a disaster response simulation are awaiting approval from Ibama (Brazilian Institute for the Environment and Renewable Natural Resources).

Privately, experts say that if the test is successful, the license should be approved almost automatically. As a consequence, there is concern that this release will trigger a cascading effect for other blocks not yet explored in the region, which is considered environmentally sensitive.

The area of ​​the Foz do Amazonas sedimentary basin was granted by the ANP (National Petroleum Agency) in 2013 and is part of the Brazilian equatorial margin, which runs from Amapá to Rio Grande do Norte. Block 59 is located approximately 160 km from the coast of Oiapoque (AP) and 500 km from the mouth of the Amazon River itself.

At the time of the concession, the environmental fragility of the region was recognized by a technical opinion. The document mentions the biodiversity and the richness of fishing resources in the place, also pointing out that there is a lack of studies to know more about the place.

The area is also home to the largest mangroves in Brazil, on the coast of Amapá, and immense systems of coral reefs, which were recently discovered and about which little is known.

Suely Araújo, specialist in public policies at the Climate Observatory and former president of Ibama (2016-2018), explains that managing an accident in the region would be difficult. “The area has very strong currents that go towards Guyana and French Guiana. So, if there is an accident in those blocks, in a few hours, the oil is no longer in Brazilian waters.”

She says that, during her management, Ibama denied the French oil company TotalEnergies the exploration license for five blocks that are close to block 59. “Total was unable to prove that, in the event of an accident, it would manage to control the oil slick. an accident there could be a catastrophe from an environmental point of view”, he says.

The oil dispersion modeling studies included in the licensing do not demonstrate the possibility of an eventual spill reaching the Brazilian coast.

“The traditional knowledge of the communities and indigenous peoples of Oiapoque says, however, that the tide reaches the Brazilian coast. That the water enters the indigenous lands, in the Cabo Orange National Park, and that, in the case of an oil spill, with their territories would certainly be affected”, says Daniela Jerez, public policy analyst for the NGO WWF.

In the report, Ibama’s environmental licensing team explains that some critical aspects still need to be resolved, especially with regard to the care of animals affected by a possible oil spill.

The license includes, in simple terms, two emergency plans: a conceptual one and a simulation. First, the company must list, on paper, the chain of actions to be taken to contain possible accidents, such as oil spills. Only after approval of this document can the on-site simulation be carried out.

The conceptual plan presented by Petrobras has not yet been approved. Even so, since December 18, the company has already moved the necessary structure for the test to the region, at a cost of BRL 290 million, according to the company’s official letter to Ibama, which the Reuters agency had access to.

Technicians at the institute say that Ibama did not determine the displacement of the equipment to the region and the decision was exclusively made by the state-owned company.

A SheetPetrobras stated that “it is a recurring practice to assemble the structure for the emergency simulation before the test is authorized”.

The state-owned company points out that it has been complying with all the requirements and procedures established by the regulatory, licensing and supervisory bodies for granting the authorization.

The oil company also argues that the equatorial margin could open a fundamental energy front for the country and that new borders are essential for guaranteeing national energy security and sovereignty.

In the company’s strategic plan for the period from 2023 to 2027, almost US$ 3 billion (about R$ 17 billion) are foreseen for the exploration of the equatorial margin, where it has already acquired other blocks.

Last Friday (24), the Ministry of Mines and Energy announced plans to scale up national production. In a statement, Alexandre Silveira, who heads the department, refers to the region as a possible “new pre-salt”.

Despite this, the equatorial margin has not been analyzed on a regional scale, which would provide more information on the cumulative effect of exploration at different points along the coast.

“The so-called Sedimentary Area Environmental Assessment would look at the region as a whole, not at a specific block”, explains Jerez. “Ibama does not have the capacity, in licensing, to analyze the other eight blocks that have already been granted for exploration — five of which also belong to Petrobras.”

She claims that 47 blocks in the region are for sale by the ANP, in addition to 157 blocks that could enter the concession in the future.

“The reading is that once a license is issued for block 59, companies will be more interested in the region”, points out Jerez. “It could have a ripple effect.”

The president of Ibama, Rodrigo Agostinho, says that the lack of a strategic environmental assessment creates a series of uncertainties for licensing.

“The environmental viability of exploring for oil in that region should have been done before the auctions were held by the ANP and not have to now, in the context of licensing, resolve [essa questão]. But regardless of that, Ibama is working hard and will analyze all the studies before taking any decision. [para o bloco 59]”, emphasizes.

“Ibama is going to carry out the technical analysis regardless of any type of pressure”, he also says.

The Planeta em Transe project is supported by the Open Society Foundations.



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