Chief Executive Officer Jean Paul Prates of Brazil’s oil giant Petrobras stated on Sunday that the company endured a week-long onslaught of a “rampant” but “ineffective” campaign aimed at destabilising its current management.
“One of the many tricks that we saw in this week of wild, albeit ineffective, campaign to destabilise the current management of Petrobras was that we were not being emphatic in defending the exploratory campaign of Foz do Amazonas,” Prates wrote in a July 30 Tweet.
Petrobras had plans to drill the Morpho 1-APS-57 prospect in block FZA-M-059 but this was stopped short when the environmental agency, the Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural Resources (IBAMA) denied the license after concerns were lodged.
Located in the deep waters of Amapá, offshore Brazil, the area known as the Brazilian Equatorial Margin is thought to hold nearly five billion barrels worth of oil as it has similar geology to Guyana, where ExxonMobil has discovered a rich pool of hydrocarbons. An oil rig has been in place since early December 2022 awaiting approval to drill the exploratory well.
Petrobras seeking to replicate Guyana’s exploration success offshore Brazil – Rystad energy | OilNOW
Petrobras had said that the potential new frontier would complement and eventually come to replace Brazil’s prolific pre-salt fields which drive its revenues and account for more than 75% of the company’s production.
But the direction the company is headed in, with Prates at the helm, seems to not be well received. The Oil Workers Union of Brazil (FUP) recently released a manifesto in staunch support of Prates, advocating for modifications to the company’s fuel-pricing policy and an immediate halt to the ongoing divestment program. The documents reportedly noted that the CEO and the board have faced relentless criticism from opponents who are pushing for the reinstatement of policies that were halted.
Ali to advance talks with Lula on Guyana-Brazil road link | OilNOW
Last year, Petrobras had started dumping assets; refineries and all its shares from a large chunk of its onshore and shallow water assets. This was stopped when Prates assumed leadership.
