Petrobras Discovered Oil in the Deepwater Part of the Campos Basin
Petroleo Brasileiro SA (Petrobras) discovered oil and natural gas accumulations in the deepwater part of the prolific Campos Basin on the continental shelf of Brazil. This was reported by the company’s press service.
Petrobras intensified exploration activities on its core acreage in an effort to unlock additional reserves. The company successfully drilled the Ruba exploration well within the C-M-477 block at a depth of 2,984 m, approximately 201 kmoff the coast of Rio de Janeiro.
The presence of hydrocarbon-bearing formations was confirmed by well logging data, gas shows, and fluid samples. The company will send the collected samples for laboratory analysis, which is expected to determine reservoir and fluid characteristics. This will allow an assessment of the field’s potential.
Petrobras is the operator of the C-M-477 block with a 70% stake, while its partner bp holds 30%. The companies acquired the block during the 16th ANP bidding round, agreeing to pay a substantial signature bonus of about $500 million, nearly 20 times higher than the initial price.
Brazil’s key oil and gas resources are concentrated in pre-salt formations. These reservoirs lie beneath thick layers of salt and sediments, and the hydrocarbons they contain are classified as hard-to-recover reserves. This is due to low reservoir permeability and complex geology, which significantly complicates seismic surveys both onshore and offshore.
Additional challenges arise from the limited quality of seismic data, as well as tectonic faults formed during the deformation of salt layers. In some cases, such faults act as migration pathways for hydrocarbons into overlying formations, complicating accurate reserve estimation.
Despite technological challenges, interest in pre-salt projects continues to grow. The country aims to increase oil production to 4.4 million barrels per day by 2034, while peak production could reach 5.3 million barrels per day as early as 2030. At the same time, the majority of production — about 76% of oil and 80% of gas — will come from offshore pre-salt fields.
Earlier, Petrobras signed an agreement with Petronas to acquire a 50% stake in the Tartaruga Verde and Espadarte (Module III) projects. As a result of the transaction, Petrobras will become the sole owner of these two offshore assets in the Campos Basin.
