Government Sells only 5 of 92 Blocks in The Worst Oil Auction since The Sector Opened in 1999

High risk and energy transition are among justifications; areas near Fernando de Noronha ended up with no offers

In the worst auction since the opening of the oil sector in the country, the government sold only 5 of the 92 areas for exploration and production offered to the market this Thursday (7).

The competition had the smallest number of participants and the lowest revenue among the 17 rounds of bidding of this type, started in 1999. The auction also failed to attract oil companies to the coast of Rio Grande do Norte, after clashes with environmentalists due to proximity to areas sensitive to biodiversity, such as the archipelagos of Fernando de Noronha and Atol das Rocas.

For specialists, the weak result reflects a lower appetite for risk in the sector, which has been focusing more and more on renewable energies and has not yet managed to explore the oil areas won in recent auctions in Brazil.

Only two companies submitted bids at the auction: the Anglo-Dutch Shell got four blocks alone and one in partnership with the Colombian Ecopetrol. All in the Santos Basin, where the areas considered less risky were located. In all, the government collected R$ 37.1 million. In inflation-adjusted values, it was the lowest collection in an ANP (National Agency for Petroleum, Gas and Biofuels) concession auction for exploratory areas.

Translated by Kiratiana Freelon

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