Petrobras allies itself with the global giants Shell and Total, and confirms its leadership position in the Brazilian pre-salt; environmentalists protest

The 2nd Round of Bids for the Surplus of the Assignment of Rights in the Production Sharing Regime in the offshore fields of Atapu and Sépia, carried out by the ANP (National Agency of Petroleum, Natural Gas and Biofuels), aroused mixed reactions in the Brazilian oil and gas market .

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Trade unionists linked to the workers protested against the advance of the foreign presence in the sector, considered strategic for the defense of national sovereignty, while oil companies and large fuel distributors evaluated the result of the auction as positive for increasing competitiveness and attracting new investments at a time when that the economy is going through a phase of technical recession, inflation and unemployment at a high level. Environmentalists also demonstrated in front of the hotel in Rio de Janeiro, where the event took place.

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Petrobras partnered with Shell Brasil and Total Energies EP and acquired oil and gas exploration and production rights in the Atapu and Sépia fields. 

In the auction, Petrobras acquired the exploration and production rights for volumes exceeding those of the transfer of rights in the offshore fields of Atapu and Sépia. The state-owned company exercised the preemptive right in the acquisition of the surplus volumes of the Sépia field, adhering to the proposal of the winning consortium. The consortium will have Petrobras as operator, with a 30% stake, in partnership with TotalEnergies EP (28%), Petronas (21%), and QP Brasil (21%).

As for the Atapu field, the oil company partnered with Shell Brasil and Total Energies EP. The consortium will have Petrobras as operator, with a 52,50% stake, in partnership with Shell Brasil (25%) and TotalEnergies (Present in several = 22,50%).

“The auction represented the last opportunity to access large pre-salt volumes already discovered, with a result of more than 11 billion reais in signing bonuses. In addition, relevant percentages of surplus oil were offered in the order of 37,43%, with a premium of 149,2% for Sépia, and 31,68% with a premium of 437,86% for Atapu. As a consequence of the government's efforts, in articulation with the industry, to improve competitiveness conditions, the event attracted the participation of large global companies. The consortia of Petrobras with Total Energies (Sépia and Atapu), Petronas (Sépia), QP (Sépia) and Shell (Atapu) were the winners”, assessed the IBP (Brazilian Institute of Petroleum), which reflects the perspective of oil companies, fuel distributors and suppliers in the sector.

In a note, the entity considered that the result of the second round of bidding means the execution and contracting of large investments to increase production and, consequently, generate employment, income, foreign exchange and revenue for the country. “So that the next auctions for exploratory areas are also competitive, the IBP emphasizes the importance of having an attractive business environment for investments, with stability of rules and legal certainty, so that we can take advantage of the current window of opportunity, and contribute for energy security in this period of transition to a low-carbon economy,” he says.

With the results of today's auction, Petrobras said it ensures the maintenance of operations in the two fields, for which it had already expressed interest in the preemptive right, as per a statement released to the market on April 28, and confirms its position leadership in the Brazilian pre-salt, consistent with its strategy of focusing on exploration and production of assets in deep and ultra-deep waters.

According to the state-owned company, Atapu and Sépia are assets with proven high productivity, oil with good characteristics and significant potential for incorporating reserves. They have a low extraction cost and are resilient to a low-price scenario, which reflects Petrobras' efficient and competitive performance in deep and ultra-deep water assets.

Atapu field reached 150 barrels of oil per day and Sépia field started production through FPSO Carioca, the largest platform in operation in Brazil in terms of complexity!

The Atapu field started production in June 2020 through the FPSO P-70, and in July 2021 reached its production capacity of 150 barrels of oil per day. It has the capacity to treat up to 6 million m³/d of gas. The Sépia field started production in August 2021 through the FPSO Carioca, the largest platform in operation in Brazil in terms of complexity.

The offer of the percentage of surplus oil to be made available to the Union was the only criterion adopted by the ANP to define the winning proposal, as the fixed value of the signature bonus was already included in the public notice. The total amount of the signing bonus to be paid by Petrobras is R$4,2 billion.

For Atapu and Sépia, the amount of compensation before the “gross up” is respectively US$ 3.253.580.741,00 and US$ 3.200.388.219,00 and will be paid by the partner companies to Petrobras in proportion to their participation in the consortia. For Atapu, Petrobras will receive compensation by April 15, 2022. The date for compensation for Sepia will be defined after negotiation with the consortium.

Guanabara Bay fishermen raise banners against oil and gas exploration

The event also saw a protest by environmentalists from 350.org and artisanal fishermen from eight associations in the Metropolitan Region of Rio de Janeiro, who staged a protest in front of the Windsor Barra Hotel, in the capital of Rio de Janeiro, to ask for an end to new oil projects and gas off the Brazilian coast.

The fishermen took a boat and fishing nets to the door of the hotel, according to a note from the entity, to remind the executives of the companies participating in the event that the fishing communities of Greater Rio de Janeiro suffer daily from the impacts of the extraction, transport and refining of oil and gas. "The companies' bids in today's auction will be, tomorrow, the impacts that affect us, such as oil leaks and the contamination of fishing resources", said, in a note, Alexandre Anderson, president of the Association of Men and Women of Guanabara Bay (Ahomar), an organization based in Magé.

One of the damages caused by the oil and gas sector in the region is the frequent contamination of stretches of Guanabara Bay by oil and chemical products used by companies, cited the group. “Small and large leaks, as well as intentional discharges of these substances, are observed almost weekly by fishermen. Failures, misconduct and lack of maintenance are the rule, not the exception, in terminal and refinery operations in Rio de Janeiro,” said Anderson.