Ten companies, alone or in groups, from nine countries bid a record-high $2.1 billion in signing bonuses for 12 of 36 offshore blocks offered in Brazil’s 16th bidding round.
A group led by Total E&P of Brazil, Petronas, and Brazil QPI offered the largest signing bonus ever in a Brazilian concession round: about $1 billion for Block CM-541 in the Campos basin.
Licensing agency ANP said the round will generate investment totaling at least $380 million in exploration phases of the new concession contracts covering a total of about 11,800 sq km. It said the round aimed to explore areas of the Campos and Santos basins outside the presalt play and to attract investment to the little-explored Pernambuco-Paraiba, Jacuipe, and Camamu-Alamada basins.
Only blocks in the Campos and Santos basins drew bids.
Other winning bids for Campos basin blocks were about $490 million by Petrobras and BP Energy for Block CM-477; $171 million by Shell Brazil, Brazil QPI, and Chevron for Block CM-659; $6.1 million for Block CM-479 by ExxonMobil Brasil; $268 million for Block CM-661 by Petronas; $6 million for Block CM-715 by Petronas; $132 million for Block CM-713 by the Shell group; $2.3 million for Block CM-795 by Repsol; $3 million for Block CM-825 by Repsol and Chevron; and $6.5 million for Block CM-845 by Chevron, Wintershall Brazil, and Repsol.
Winning bids for Santos basin blocks were about $13 million for Block SM-766 by the Chevron group and $74 million for Block SM-1500 by BP Energy.
ANP expects contracts to be signed by Feb. 14, 2020.
