Oil companies commit to investing R$1.5 billion in the Pelotas Basin

Since the possibility of a new oil frontier in the waters of the Pelotas Basin, in the south of the country, was raised, oil companies have turned their eyes and investments to the region. The interest was confirmed in the concessions auction held this Wednesday (13) by the National Petroleum, Natural Gas and Biofuels Agency (ANP).

44 blocks were purchased in six sectors of this basin for oil and gas exploration. The winning companies will pay a total signing bonus of R$289 million, with a minimum investment program of R$1.556 billion.

The dispute in the 4th Cycle of the Permanent Concession Offer (OPC) was mainly between the American company Chevron, which presented a proposal for 26 blocks in three sectors, and Petrobras, which, with its partners, obtained 29 blocks.

Of the total of 12 sectors, six had no offers. Chevron took 15 blocks in total across three sectors. But the one who came out on top was Petrobras, which won concessions in all 29 blocks for which it made an offer. Of these, 26 were in consortium with Shell and another three with Shell and the Chinese CNOOC.

Petrobras will be the operator in all blocks and, with today’s acquisition, it will add 47 blocks and expand its exploratory area by more than 20 km2, reaching 50 km2.

The value of the signing bonus to be paid in April 2024 by the company is around R$116 million. This value represents less than 1% of the investments approved in the 2024-2028 Strategic Plan and were already planned.

The auction began with the marginal, i.e. inactive, area of ​​Japiim, in the Amazon Basin. It was won by the only bidder, the consortium formed by Eneva (80%) and Atem (20%). The planned investment is R$1.2 million.

The auction of the 4th Cycle of the Permanent Concession Offer offers 33 exploratory sectors located in nine sedimentary basins: Amazonas, Espírito Santo, Paraná, Potiguar, Pelotas, Recôncavo, Santos, Sergipe-Alagoas and Tucano. In total, 21 companies presented declarations of interest and offer guarantees.

This Wednesday also takes place the 2nd Cycle of the OPP, the following blocks are on offer, located in the Pre-Salt Polygon: Cruzeiro do Sul, Esmeralda, Jade, Tupinambá (Santos Basin) and Turmalina (Campos Basin).

Six companies are qualified to submit a proposal. In this model, pre-salt areas enter and whoever offers the most advantageous proposal to the Union for the oil surplus wins.

Discovery in Africa rekindled interest in the Pelotas Basin

The Rio Grande do Sul basin has not been included in a concession auction since 2004. Today there is no block under contract in the Pelotas Basin and no exploration activity in the region.

Interest has been revived by a significant discovery of oil and gas in Namibia, on the west coast of Africa. This is because, although they are more than 6 thousand kilometers away from each other, the two areas have similar geological characteristics, which fuels the expectation that the coast of Rio Grande do Sul also has great potential to be explored.

Petrobras’ strategy was to be selective in the blocks and invest in partnerships with companies already experienced in deep water offshore exploration, a reflection of its interest in new frontiers with geological potential.

“New frontiers, like the blocks acquired today, are essential for energy demand to be met. Therefore, we seek to replenish reserves and develop new exploratory frontiers that ensure energy demand is met during the energy transition with the lowest possible carbon footprint”, says the president of Petrobras, Jean Paul Prates.

The Pelotas Basin is considered a new frontier for oil exploration and is especially important for Petrobras while the company is unable to obtain an environmental license from Ibama to explore in the Foz do Amazonas Basin, on the so-called Equatorial Margin, on the north coast of the country.

Estimates suggest reserves of at least 10 billion barrels in the Equatorial Margin, slightly less than the current proven pre-salt reserves of 11.5 billion barrels, according to the ANP.