Candeias Field, First to Produce Oil in Brazil: Well C-01 Was Drilled in 1941 and Gave Rise to Mataripe Refinery

Written by Bruno Teles

Published on 15/04/2025 at 15:04

Primeiro poço comercial do país foi perfurado em 1941 no Recôncavo Baiano e deu origem à refinaria de Mataripe, atual REFMAT Acelen

Be the first to react!

First Commercial Well in the Country Was Drilled in 1941 in the Recôncavo Baiano and Gave Rise to the Mataripe Refinery, Now REFMAT Acelen

The Candeias field, located in the municipality of Candeias, Bahia, made history on December 13, 1941, when the C-01 well (Candeias-01) gushed oil for the first time on a commercial scale in Brazil. It was the beginning of the journey that would transform the country into one of the largest global oil producers, culminating in the discoveries of the pre-salt.

Geologist Pedro Moura, responsible for the well’s location, etched his name with the first great achievement of Brazilian geology. The production of Candeias, initially operated by Petrobras, is now conducted by BRAVA Energia, a merger of 3R Petroleum and Enauta.

Candeias Field: Cradle of the Oil Industry in Brazil

First commercial well in the country was drilled in 1941 in the Recôncavo Baiano and gave rise to the Mataripe Refinery, now REFMAT Acelen

The original structure of the Candeias field was made up of riveted storage tanks, a technique that predates the widespread introduction of welding. These tanks were installed around the first producing wells and represent the beginning of the Brazilian industrial infrastructure in the oil and gas sector.

ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW

From the Era of Rivets to the Pre-Salt: Technical and Cultural Legacy

The Candeias field symbolizes the link between the beginning of the national industry and modern technological advancements. Even today, it is possible to find operational equipment from the 1940s, thanks to rigorous inspection, maintenance, and asset integrity programs.

The journey that began in the Recôncavo Baiano was the starting point for Brazil to reach ultra-deep fields like those of the pre-salt, where production exceeds 3 million barrels per day, using state-of-the-art drilling ships and carbon capture and gas reinjection technologies.

The legacy of the Candeias field lives on not only through production but also through the preservation of the memory and effort of generations of workers, from fishermen and shellfish gatherers to engineers and technicians.

Candeias Field, First to Produce Oil in Brazil: Well C-01 Was Drilled in 1941 and Gave Rise to Mataripe Refinery

First Commercial Well in the Country Was Drilled in 1941 in the Recôncavo Baiano and Gave Rise to the Mataripe Refinery, Now REFMAT Acelen

Candeias Field: Cradle of the Oil Industry in Brazil

From the Era of Rivets to the Pre-Salt: Technical and Cultural Legacy

A Chinese factory in Guangdong is assembling a humanoid robot every 30 minutes while Tesla, Figure, and Boston Dynamics still struggle to deliver 10 thousand per year.

Elon Musk’s internet comes to mobile: Starlink technology connects smartphones without an antenna via satellite, works even without carrier signal, already costs just US$10 extra in the US, and could arrive in Brazil as an included benefit.

In Niger, mud buildings have stood for ten generations while the world spends billions on concrete and steel, now African architects are proving at the Venice Biennale and in real projects that red earth can be the smartest and most sustainable building material of the 21st century.

Seven world powers including the US, China, and Russia are spending €22 billion on a reactor in the south of France that aims to confine plasma at 150 million degrees Celsius, ten times the temperature of the Sun’s core, using a magnetic field capable of lifting an entire aircraft carrier.

While Brazil has been discussing bullet trains for 16 years, China delivers 5 new high-speed lines in 2026, surpasses 50,000 km of HSR, and moves 1 billion passengers in a single year.

Secret chamber sealed 4,500 years ago found in the Pyramid of Khufu, and Hawass announces its opening to the world in 2026

With a wingspan of 152 meters, 76 tires, and a capacity to carry 1,270 tons, the Boeing Pelican was the giant “flying ship” that promised to cross oceans close to the water on an invisible air cushion beneath its wings.

North Korea faces traffic jams for the first time in history, and residents of Pyongyang are already having difficulty parking, with yellow license plates of private cars everywhere and analysts estimating that the number of private vehicles could exceed 20,000 next year.

From the Moon to the construction site: NASA’s 3D printing technology now erects buildings on Earth with record speed and zero waste

A delegation representing 12 trillion dollars in economic power landed in Beijing alongside Trump, with Musk and the CEO of Nvidia aboard Air Force One: the mission is to pressure Xi to open the Chinese market.

The Central Bank of China reinforces its commitment to accelerate the use of the yuan in international trade and creates its own transaction infrastructure called CIPS. The goal is not to compete with the dollar, but to offer an alternative to other countries.

Pope Leo XIV sees an old dispute return with force after an ultratraditionalist group challenges a central rule of the Catholic Church, insisting on ordaining bishops without Rome’s approval and potentially causing a new schism in the Catholic Church.

Candeias Field, First to Produce Oil in Brazil: Well C-01 Was Drilled in 1941 and Gave Rise to Mataripe Refinery

First Commercial Well in the Country Was Drilled in 1941 in the Recôncavo Baiano and Gave Rise to the Mataripe Refinery, Now REFMAT Acelen

Candeias Field: Cradle of the Oil Industry in Brazil

From the Era of Rivets to the Pre-Salt: Technical and Cultural Legacy

A Chinese factory in Guangdong is assembling a humanoid robot every 30 minutes while Tesla, Figure, and Boston Dynamics still struggle to deliver 10 thousand per year.

Elon Musk’s internet comes to mobile: Starlink technology connects smartphones without an antenna via satellite, works even without carrier signal, already costs just US$10 extra in the US, and could arrive in Brazil as an included benefit.

In Niger, mud buildings have stood for ten generations while the world spends billions on concrete and steel, now African architects are proving at the Venice Biennale and in real projects that red earth can be the smartest and most sustainable building material of the 21st century.

Seven world powers including the US, China, and Russia are spending €22 billion on a reactor in the south of France that aims to confine plasma at 150 million degrees Celsius, ten times the temperature of the Sun’s core, using a magnetic field capable of lifting an entire aircraft carrier.

While Brazil has been discussing bullet trains for 16 years, China delivers 5 new high-speed lines in 2026, surpasses 50,000 km of HSR, and moves 1 billion passengers in a single year.

Secret chamber sealed 4,500 years ago found in the Pyramid of Khufu, and Hawass announces its opening to the world in 2026

With a wingspan of 152 meters, 76 tires, and a capacity to carry 1,270 tons, the Boeing Pelican was the giant “flying ship” that promised to cross oceans close to the water on an invisible air cushion beneath its wings.

OPEC reduces oil demand forecast for 2026, but bets on global market recovery in 2027

Braskem’s new generation tankers will cross over 5,500 nautical miles between the U.S. and Brazil, reduce CO₂ emissions by 30%, and transport naphtha with modern engines, an optimized hull, and a focus on at-sea efficiency on a strategic route.

Weatherford secures offshore contracts in Brazil through 2030 with operations in the Búzios field and Campos Basin.

Oil-bearing rocks: the most oil-rich place on the planet, with more than 30 supergiant fields and 5 billion barrels in each one

The United States releases 53.3 million barrels of oil to try to contain the energy crisis and curb global price increases.

North Korea faces traffic jams for the first time in history, and residents of Pyongyang are already having difficulty parking, with yellow license plates of private cars everywhere and analysts estimating that the number of private vehicles could exceed 20,000 next year.

From the Moon to the construction site: NASA’s 3D printing technology now erects buildings on Earth with record speed and zero waste

A delegation representing 12 trillion dollars in economic power landed in Beijing alongside Trump, with Musk and the CEO of Nvidia aboard Air Force One: the mission is to pressure Xi to open the Chinese market.

The Central Bank of China reinforces its commitment to accelerate the use of the yuan in international trade and creates its own transaction infrastructure called CIPS. The goal is not to compete with the dollar, but to offer an alternative to other countries.

Pope Leo XIV sees an old dispute return with force after an ultratraditionalist group challenges a central rule of the Catholic Church, insisting on ordaining bishops without Rome’s approval and potentially causing a new schism in the Catholic Church.