14-11-05
Brazil expects to achieve oil self-sufficiency
next year by producing nearly 2 mm bpd of oil, Finance Minister Silas Rondeau
said. Currently, Brazil produces 1.73 mm bpd of oil and projects yearend
consumption of 1.85 mm bpd.
"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 bn in exploration and
production. The company will spend $ 28 bn in Brazil, including $ 4.1 bn on
exploration and $ 23.9 bn 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 mm cmpd 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.
Source: Dow Jones