CEO of Aker BP says that investments in the Brazilian oil and gas market could be one of his next steps

Aker BP may apply investments in the Brazilian oil and gas market if there is an opportunity

Aker BP can expand its oil and gas investments to other countries if it finds competitive opportunities abroad, its chief executive said on Thursday. Any move to invest outside its native Norway would be a shift in strategy for Aker BP, which was founded in 2016 by combining BP's Norwegian unit with Aker-controlled oil and gas assets.

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Brazil on the investment radar

Among the locations the company examined is Brazil, where one of its sister companies, engineering firm Aker Solutions, has done oil business for years, said Aker BP Chief Executive Karl Johnny Hersvik, in an interview.

“Brazil is an interesting oil market. It's a highly prolific region,” Hersvik said, but added that he has yet to find assets that would justify an investment there. Brazilian state-owned operator Petrobras, which is looking to settle debts and sharpen its focus, last year put the Albacora and Albacora Leste fields up for sale, with a combined daily production of around 77.000 barrels of oil equivalent. “We analyzed that divestment campaign and decided not to participate,” he said of the two Albacora fields.

The company's CEO says that companies must exit their investment cycle

Aker BP is already planning a major expansion in Norway, with a dozen projects expected to come online over the next few years and with a tax incentive package introduced by the country's parliament to boost activity.

“Any entry outside the Norwegian Continental Shelf (NCS), but also mergers and acquisitions activities on the NCS need to make sense in this context,” Hersvik said.

Aker BP, which last year pumped 210.700 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd), plans to increase its production in Norway by 70% to more than 350.000 boepd in 2028, it announced on Thursday.

Norwegian billionaire Kjell Inge Roekke owns 40% of Aker BP shares through his investment firm Aker, while Britain's BP holds 30% of shares. Aker BP shares traded 2,3% lower on the day at 13:12 pm GMT, underperforming an average 0,3% drop in European oil and gas shares.