Shell Brasil Petroleo Ltda, a subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell PLC, was awarded five exploration blocks in two sectors of the Santos basin off Brazil as part of the country's 17th bid round conducted by the National Agency of Petroleum, Natural Gas, and Biofuels (ANP) Oct. 7.
ANP said investments of at least R$136 million will be generated in the first years of the contracts for the five blocks awarded.
Shell will serve as operator of blocks SM-1709, SM-1707, SM-1715, SM-1717, and SM-1719 and will pay R$35.1 million in signing bonuses. In block SM-1709, Shell will have a 70% stake, in partnership with Ecopetrol, with a 30% stake.
With the acquisition of the new blocks, Shell's total presence in Brazil reaches 28 exploratory blocks, 1 field under development, and 14 fields in production.
The round offered 92 blocks in 11 high-potential sectors and new frontiers in four Brazilian maritime sedimentary basins: Campos, Pelotas, Potiguar, and Santos.