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Petrobras: New finds in Sergipe-Alagoas Basin will support gasification programme
PETROBRAS, the national oil company (NOC) of Brazil, is optimistic about the future of its gas- i cation programme on the back of several new discoveries in the Sergipe-Alagoas Basin.
Last week, the company issued a statement con rming earlier reports of major natural gas nds at six deepwater o shore blocks: Barra, Cumbe, Farfan, Moita Bonita, Muriu and Poco Verde. It did not o er a reserve estimate, but it did say it was working to assess the fields’ potential. It also said it intended to launch a test drilling programme at Farfan later this year for the purpose of studying the eld’s geological structure.
Earlier this year, Petrobras described the Ser- gipe-Alagoas blocks as the biggest gas reserves discovered offshore Brazil since the pre-salt nds in 2006. It also predicted that the elds would eventually yield 20 million cubic feet per day of gas and generate $7bn per year in addi- tional revenues.
e company hopes to use production from the new fields – and from other sites in the
Sergipe-Alagoas Basin – to support its domestic gasi cation programme. is initiative, which is being spearheaded by Economy Minister Paolo Guedes, is designed to make gas available to industrial and business consumers in larger quantities and at lower prices.
Guedes has described the programme as a “cheap energy shock” that will bring gas prices down by 50%. He has asserted that bringing energy prices down will encourage industriali- sation and investment in the Brazilian economy.
Government o cials hope that expanding exploration and development work at the new fields will attract other investors to the Ser- gipe-Alagoas Basin.
Petrobras is set to spend US$2 billion this year on development projects in the area, including the construction of storage depots and a pipeline connecting the elds to the coast. e NOC is building these facilities to serve pri- vate investors as well as its own operations in the hope of encouraging producers to deliver gas to onshore markets at lower costs. ™
Brazil Energy Insight
Week 25 26•June•2019 w w w . N E W S B A S E . c o m
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