Oil production under Brazil’s sharing regime quadruples in 2022

The production of petroleum as governed by contracts under Brazil’s sharing regime in 2022 was nearly four times higher than in 2021. Last year, 233 million barrels of oil were generated through seven contracts, compared to 62 million in 2021.

The figures were released Thursday (Feb. 23) by Pré-Sal Petróleo, or PPSA, a company created in 2013 to manage such deals.

Since the beginning of the present time series in the sharing regime, in 2017, the output has added up to 343.11 million barrels of oil. Of the total, 9.8 million barrels were allocated to the government.

The top producers in 2022 were the Búzios and Mero fields, with 152 and 34 million barrels of oil, respectively. Together, they accounted for 80 percent of the harvest.

Considering the government’s slice alone, the two fields also contributed the most—74 percent. The government’s natural oil are traded by PPSA according to their availability. In 2022, BRL 4.71 billion went to the National Treasury.

Natural gas

Natural gas also showed an outstanding performance last year, with 602 million cubic meters available for sale—more than three times 2021’s 187 million cubic meters.

The Búzios field was the main producer, with 528 million cubic meters. The government had 48 million cubic meters. Nonetheless, 80 percent of the government’s natural gas derives from the Sapinhoá Entorno contract. Since 2017, the yield has reached 990 million cubic meters of natural gas apt for commercial use.