Blocks in the Foz do Amazonas Basin enter the ANP’s Permanent Offer Cycle for the first time

The National Petroleum Agency (ANP) revealed today the blocks that will be part of the 5th Cycle of the Permanent Concession Offer (OPC), which will take place on June 17. In all, 16 blocks will be offered, in five sedimentary basins – four offshore and one onshore. One of the new features is the inclusion of four blocks in the Foz do Amazonas Basin, which, for the first time, will have some of its blocks within the Permanent Concession Offer modality.

There is still a lot of uncertainty in the industry about what the interest of oil companies will be in the Foz do Amazonas Basin blocks. Despite the region’s great oil potential, there is a major challenge to making exploration in the area viable due to environmental issues. As is known, Petrobras has been trying unsuccessfully for years to obtain a license from Ibama to drill in block FZA-M-059, approximately 175 km off the Brazilian coast, on the coast of the state of Amapá, at a depth of 2,880 meters.

In addition to the areas of the Foz do Amazonas, the new Permanent Offer cycle will also include five blocks in the Santos Basin, four blocks in the Pelotas Basin and one offshore block in the Potiguar Basin. The auction will also include two blocks in the Parecis Basin, the only onshore basin with blocks on offer. From now until May 12, the 31 companies registered and eligible to bid in the 5th Cycle may still submit declarations of interest accompanied by additional bid guarantees exclusively for blocks in these 16 sectors.