Petrobras Clears Bids for Urucu Fields

Brazilian state oil company Petrobras said on December 7 that its board had approved binding offers for the Urucu oil and gas cluster in the Amazonas state as part of its divestment programme.

The company said on December 4 it had received offers from 3R Petroleum Oleo e Gas and Eneva SA, while confirming media reports that the bids ranged between $600mn and $1bn. But the company cautioned that "it takes into consideration in the analysis of the bids all the components of value and other conditions reflected in the proposals, including firm payments, contingent payments and other relevant contractual conditions, so that the amounts reported in the media do not provide a sufficient basis for comparison of the bids received."

Petrobras put the Urucu fields up for sale in June as part of a sweeping divestment programme, aimed at raising capital to pay off debts and invest in deepwater projects.  The fields – Azul, Araracanga, Leste do Urucu, Rio Urucu, Sudoeste Urucu, Cupiuba and Carapanauba – collectively flowed 106,353 barrels of oil equivalent/day in the first quarter. This comprised 16,520 barrels/day of oil and condensate, 14.28mn ft³/day of gas and 1,150 metric tons/day of liquid petroleum gas.

Petrobras has said it plans to raise between $25bn and $35bn from asset sales between 2021 and 2025, up from a plan to divest $20-30bn in 2020-2024.