Brazil begins development of Tupi field

Eduardo Herrera

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil - In what is seen as the start of a "new era" for Latin America's largest economy, Brazil's state-owned oil giant Petrobras has begun pumping crude from its enormous ultra-deepwater Tupi field. Located in the Atlantic 290 km south-east of Rio de Janeiro, the field has estimated reserves of between 5 billion and 8 billion barrels.

According to O Globo, Petrobras displayed a barrel of oil from the field at a 1 May ceremony attended by President Lula and several of his ministers. "It is a historic moment. We are at the beginning of a new era and we still don't know everything about what is lying below or the difficulties that we'll have to overcome to extract the oil," said Lula.

Petrobras chairman Jose Sergio Gabrielli told EFE that "Brazil, which became self-sufficient in oil a year ago, can now think about becoming an exporter".

The Tupi field is located in a part of the Atlantic known as the Santos Basin and, explained EFE, is the first "pre-salt" reservoir to be developed by Brazil and the world's deepest. The oil lies 7,000 metres below sea level, beneath a 2,000 metre-thick layer of salt. The Tupi pilot project is expected to produce 100,000 barrels per day in 2010, possibly rising to 290,000 by 2011.

If the field's estimated reserves are confirmed, Brazil will become one of the world's ten leading oil producers. President Lula has announced that his government intends to use its oil wealth "to make Brazil into a developed country".

According to noticias.rtp.pt, however, Lula declined to say whether Brazil would join OPEC, explaining that he was not convinced that it had the muscle to control international oil prices.

Lula also said that Brazil intends to continue investing in the production of "green" fuels like ethanol and biodiesel, but at the same time encouraged Petrobras to find and pump as much oil as possible.

Source: http://infosurhoy.com

<< back to Company News