QatarEnergy Secures Seven Offshore Exploration Licenses in Brazil with Petrobras

QatarEnergy, in a consortium with Brazil's Petrobras, has successfully secured seven offshore exploration blocks in Brazil's Ceará Basin during the sixth Concession Open Acreage Bid Round, organized by Brazil's National Agency of Petroleum, Natural Gas and Biofuels (ANP).

In a statement released on Thursday, QatarEnergy announced that the newly awarded blocks are situated along Brazil's northeastern Equatorial Margin. Under the agreement, QatarEnergy will maintain a 30% participating interest, while Petrobras will act as the operator with a 70% stake.

Saad Sherida Al Kaabi, Qatar's Minister of State for Energy Affairs and QatarEnergy President and CEO, stated that the successful bids expand the company's upstream portfolio in the country. He expressed gratitude to Petrobras, ANP, and Brazilian authorities for their support, looking forward to continued collaboration.

Spanning approximately 4,700 square kilometres, the blocks—designated as CE-M-471, CE-M-473, CE-M-475, CE-M-477, CE-M-537, CE-M-539, and CE-M-665—lie in water depths ranging from 2,000 to 3,600 metres. Concession contracts for these awards are anticipated to be signed in the first half of 2027.

This latest development builds upon QatarEnergy's existing operations in Brazil, which include a 21% interest in the Sépia field alongside Petrobras, TotalEnergies, and Petronas. In May 2024, the Sépia joint venture partners advanced the second development phase of the field, which features an FPSO designed to handle a crude oil production capacity of 225,000 barrels per day and a gas processing capacity of 10 million cubic metres daily.