(Reuters, 17.Apr.2019 — Brazil’s government will require a signing bonus of 106 billion reais ($26.9 billion) in an Oct. 28 auction of excess oil from the so-called transfer-of-rights area in the pre-salt fields, Economy Minister Paulo Guedes said on Wednesday.
Companies bidding would also have to compensate state-run oil company Petrobras for investments that Petrobras already made in the blocks. The auction comes after the settlement of a long-running dispute between Petrobras and the Brazilian government about one of the world’s most promising offshore oil areas.
The auction will be divided in four blocks, referring to excess oil produced in the areas of Atapu, Buzios, Itapu and Sepia, in the Santos Basin. Guedes did not disclose the signing bonus for each area.
Guedes told reporters after a meeting of the National Council of Energy Policy that the federal government will share part of the proceeds of the signing bonus with regional state governments, but said the amount is not yet defined.
$1 = 3.9382 reais
(Reporting by Marcela Ayres; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)
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