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The country's first commercial well was drilled in 1941 in Recôncavo Baiano and gave rise to the Mataripe refinery, now REFMAT Acelen
O Candeias field, located in the municipality of Candeias, Bahia, entered history in December 13, 1941, when the well C-01 (Candeias-01) oil gushed for the first time on a commercial scale in Brazil. It was the beginning of the trajectory that would transform the country into one of the largest global oil producers, culminating in the discoveries of pre-salt.
The geologist Pedro Moura, responsible for the well location, made his name with the first great achievement of Brazilian geology. The production of Candeias, initially operated by Petrobras, is now led by BRAVA Energy, fusion between 3R Petroleum e Enjoy.
Campo de Candeias: birthplace of the oil industry in Brazil
The original structure of the Candeias field was composed of riveted storage tanks, a technique that predated the introduction of large-scale welding. These tanks were installed around the first producing wells and represent the beginning of Brazilian industrial infrastructure in the oil and gas sector.
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With the growth in production, the need arose to build a nearby refinery. In 1947, construction began on the Landulpho Alves Refinery (RLAM), current REFMAT Accelen, located just 5 km from the field, in the neighboring municipality of São Francisco do Conde. The unit was Brazil's first refinery and today it continues to be one of the main ones in the country.
From the rivet era to pre-salt: technical and cultural legacy
O Candeias field symbolizes the link between the beginning of national industry and modern technological advances. Even today, it is possible to find 1940s equipment in operation, thanks to rigorous training programs inspection, maintenance and integrity of assets.
The journey that began in Recôncavo Baiano was the starting point for Brazil to reach ultra-deep fields such as pre-salt, where production exceeds the 3 million barrels per day, using state-of-the-art platform ships and carbon capture and gas reinjection technologies.
The legacy of the Candeias field remains alive not only through production, but by preserving the memory and efforts of generations of workers, from fishermen and shellfish gatherers to engineers and technicians.
