Peter Howard Wertheim
OGJ correspondent
RIO DE JANEIRO, Nov. 14 -- Brazil expects to achieve oil self-sufficiency next year by producing nearly 2 million b/d of oil, Finance Minister Silas Rondeau said.
Currently, Brazil produces 1.73 million b/d of oil and projects yearend consumption of 1.85 million b/d.
"Self-sufficiency in petroleum should be reached. . .in 2006," Rondeau said.
Guilherme Estrella, Petrobras's exploration and production director, said that during 2006-10 Petrobras plans to invest $34.1 billion in exploration and production.
The company will spend $28 billion in Brazil, including $4.1 billion on exploration and $23.9 billion on production and development, he said.
During the 1970s, Brazil imported 85% of the oil it consumed, causing a financial crisis that lasted more than a decade.
Its commitment to exploration and production includes a new emphasis on natural gas.
"We estimate that in 10 years we'll have 70 million cu m/day of gas—about four times what we have now," Rondeau said. He also said it's too early to project when Brazil might reach self-sufficiency in gas.
