Landmark Brazilian auction falls flat
Enormous offshore pre-salt reserves fail to entice IOCs to the Transfer of Rights surplus bidding round
The build-up to the country’s so-called Transfer of Rights bidding round all augured well for the Brazilian government. After months of compensation negotiations with Brazil’s state-owned oil and gas company Petrobras over previous investments made in the deposits, the dispute was finally resolved and the auction promised to attract a multitude of international oil companies (IOCs) to the huge pre-salt oil reserves on offer—potentially generating at least R$106bn ($25.85bn) in signing bonuses. But the narrative failed to follow the script. Of the four fields on offer only Buzios and Itapu were successfully auctioned, raising just under R$70bn, or 65pc of the total available bonuses. Both the
Also in this section
24 January 2025
Domestic companies in Nigeria and other African jurisdictions are buying assets from existing majors they view as more likely to deliver production upside under their stewardship
23 January 2025
The end of transit, though widely anticipated, leaves Europe paying a third more for gas than a year ago and greatly exposed to supply shocks
23 January 2025
The country’s government and E&P companies are leaving no stone unturned in their quest to increase domestic crude output as BP–ONGC tie-up leads the way
22 January 2025
The return of Donald Trump gives further evidence of ‘big oil’ as an investable asset, with the only question being whether anyone is really surprised
