BRASILIA: Brazil’s next oil and gas licensing round in October has already drawn interest from 24 companies, local hydrocarbons regulator ANP said.
Round 13 will offer concessions for 266 exploration blocks, 182 of which are onshore and 84 offshore.
Interested bidders have until August 11 to register for the tender, which will be Brazil’s first offering of oil and gas blocks since 2013.
“We have had good signs,” ANP director José Gutman said during a seminar to promote the auction in Rio de Janeiro. “Of the 24 companies that have shown interest, 23 have already paid the [registration] fee.”
The government expects to net up to 2bn reais (US$630mn) in signature bonuses from the October 7 auction.
Gutman denied that the enthusiasm had been diluted by low oil prices and a corruption scandal at state-run oil firm Petrobras. “Companies involved in this business are looking long term,” he said.
ANP did not disclose which companies had registered for the bid round. Earlier this year Russia’s Gazprom, France’s Total and the UK’s BP said they were evaluating whether to participate.
In an interview with BNamericas last month, Rio de Janeiro-based consultancy Uphill said bidders could include international players BHP Billiton, Premier and Rosneft, in addition to local firms Petra Energia and PetroRio.
