English 
Francês 
Alemão 
Italiano 
Japonês 
Norueguês 
Portuguese 
Spanish 
2 min of reading 
Measure Comes After Petrobras Exercised Preference for Three Pre-Salt Oil Fields in Thursday’s Auction and Acquired Only One
Petrobras may lose priority in the exploration of blocks in the Pre-Salt. The state-owned company has this right guaranteed by law as it was the discoverer of the richest layer of oil on the continental shelf.
After the results of the 6th sharing round auction, which repeated the results of the onerous assignment auction that took place the day before, with Petrobras and the Chinese being the only ones to make purchases in the ANP auctions, the Senate Infrastructure Commission will discuss changes in the pre-salt exploration rules.
The bill (PL 3.178/2019) from Senator José Serra (PSDB-SP) eliminates the preferential option clause that Petrobras has the right to, and a public hearing requested by Senator Jean Paul Prates (PT-RN) aims to hear the opinion of representatives from Petrobras, the government, research institutes, and unions.
-
Government unlocks R$ 554 million for a highway that has been requested for decades and accelerates the duplication of BR.
-
Without bricks, without cement, and without endless construction: the cardboard house that is assembled in modules and can be moved.
-
Billions of barrels on the equatorial margin could lead Amapá to double its oil production in Brazil — the state aims to enter the route of companies in the Campos Basin, attract investments, and boost jobs and businesses in the oil and gas sector.
-
Without bricks, without cement, and without endless construction: the cardboard house that is assembled in modules and can be moved.
What Is Applicable Today
Currently, Petrobras has the right to a minimum participation of 30% as a partner in the winning consortium, but must inform the government before each pre-salt auction if it will exercise this right.
All this mobilization for change is occurring due to the oil company’s decision to acquire (with the Chinese) only one area in Thursday’s auction (6th round), that of Aram, after expressing preference in two others and not submitting bids.
The fact has drawn criticism from the Director-General of the ANP, Décio Oddone, who stated, “The exercise of the right of preference reduces the competitiveness of the bidding.”
Another critic of Petrobras’s initiative was the Minister of Mines and Energy, Bento Albuquerque, who was present at the auction and said upon leaving the event, “The fact that Petrobras defends the right of preference and does not participate must be analyzed. It does not seem sensible to maintain the regime as it is today.”
The Senate Infrastructure Commission will take advantage of the public hearing to discuss changes in the rules and will have the participation of invited guests Fernando Assumpção Borges, Executive Manager of Petrobras; Antônio Guimarães from the Brazilian Institute of Oil (IBP); Paulo Cesar Ribeiro Lima from the Association of Petrobras Engineers (AEPET); and representatives from the Ministry of Mines and Energy, the National Agency of Petroleum, Natural Gas, and Biofuels (ANP), the Institute for Strategic Studies of Oil, Natural Gas, and Biofuels (INEEP), and the Unified Federation of Petroleum Workers (FUP).
Seja o primeiro a reagir!