Brazil Oil & Gas and Marine Highlights from DIT

25 April 2019

Brazil O&G and Marine Highlights DIT News of the Brazilian Market

Agreement on Parque das Baleias is signed between ANP and Petrobras. The agreement closes the controversy involving the areas of the Parque das Baleias. According to the agreement, the new outline of the Jubarte Field - which will be called "New Jubarte Field" - will be formed by the areas of Jubarte, Blue Whale, Whale Free, parts of Cachalote and Pirambu, in the Campos Basin. [T&B Petroleum]

Petrobras informs the publication of new teaser regarding the sale of Liquigás. The new teaser, which contains the main information about the opportunity, as well as wider eligibility criteria for the selection of potential participants, is available at Petrobras website. The adjustments made are intended to increase the competitiveness of the process, making possible the participation of investors from other sectors, and mitigating competitive risks and market concentration. The new deadline for the expression of interest is 04/19/2019. [Petrobras]

Ibama issued the pre-license for the 3rd Stage of development of production in the pre-salt of the Santos Basin, for Petrobras. The next cycle of investments in the region is scheduled to install 11 FPSOs for definitive production systems, two production pilots and another 10 long duration (TLD) or advance production systems (SPA) – TLDs / SPAs are all in a stage of evaluation, ranging from 6 months to 1 year, without definitive unit installation. [Brazil Energy Insight]

Petrobras should experience strong production growth if system maintenance work over the next couple months is kept to a minimum. The company said there will be less maintenance between March and June, therefore Opec projects a ramp up primarily based on the six Fpsos, each with 150,000 bpd capacity, each operating in different fields. [Kallanish Energy]

KPMG consultancy indicates that the state of Rio de Janeiro had 75 mergers and acquisitions in the year 2018, a considerable increase compared to the 62 operations registered in the previous year. The main highlight was the oil and gas sector, which had the largest number of transactions of type – 12 in total. According to KPMG, the increase registered in mergers and acquisitions in the State of Rio de Janeiro is in line with the growth of operations of the type in the Southeast when the data for 2018 and 2017 are compared. [Brazil Energy Insight]

Maha Energy is preparing a new well to start production at the Tiê field in the Recôncavo Basin. The oil company reported that the Attic well (7-TIE-1D-BA) reached 2,607 m depth, intersecting all defined targets, including the formation of Boipeba. The company added that the tests carried out in the Água Grande and Sergi formations in the same field indicated the presence of oil and that the operations of completing the assets were already started. [Brazil Energy Insight]

Brazilian shipping companies (EBNs) and the National Agency of Waterway Transportation (Antaq) create 'positive agenda' to leverage cabotage. Representatives of the Brazilian Association of Cabotage Shipowners (Abac) presented a study on the promotion of the modal to the board of Antaq. The association points to the need of ensuring that the price of cabotage fuel is equal to the bunker price of long haul navigation. The study also points to the need to ensure that the low sulfur bunker, set by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) standards by early 2020, does not further burden the cost of cabotage. The study presented that cabotage shipping emits four times less pollutants than road transport, in addition to representing potential savings of £ 347 million per year in freight. [Portos e Navios, available in Portuguese only]

Brazilian port and container terminal operator Santos Brasil has announced the launch of a new stage of its investment plan for the Tecon Santos terminal. The company is to invest a total of £ 265 million in the terminal in exchange for the extension of the concession contract from 2022 to 2047. Expansion of the dock area is due to begin in June 2019, adding a further 220 metres to the current 980 metres of the Tecon terminal and 210 metres of the TEV vehicles terminal, with work to be concluded by the end of 2020. The expansion will allow the terminal to receive three Panamax ships at once, increasing its container handling capacity by 20% to 2.4mn TEUs per year. [EMIS]

The government of Pernambuco state believes that private investments should be allowed in Suape port to modernise and extend the existing premises as the federal government has suggested. The study to find a private partner will be hired via Brazil's national development bank BNDES. Such study should be ready within 18 months. The bidding process to find such partner will take place in the second half of 2020. [EMIS]

The April´s edition of the Brazil Business Brief produced by the Brazilian Chamber of Commerce in London features an interview with the British Consul-General Rio de Janeiro, Simon Wood explaining the role of the British Government network in Brazil, priority areas between the two countries, policy, trade, R&D, HMTC and a lot more. It also brings an interview with Adriano Pires Rodrigues from CBIE – Brazilian Center for Infrastructure, who gives a very complete overview of the Oil & Gas sector in Brazil, its transition to a low carbon economy, what is expected from the new government in terms of new policies and reforms, investments and opportunities. Click here to read or download.