Petrobras is expanding local content expectations beyond formal contractual mandates in Brazil, according to a February 19 Rystad Energy analysis.
In January 2025, Petrobabs had noted that Brazil’s local content law aims to boost investments and optimize the country’s exploration and production activities. Petrobras hailed the law as an important milestone for Brazil’s oil and gas sector, highlighting its potential to attract investment and benefit the national industry.
The Rystad Energy report explained that the South American nation’s policy is evolving.
It stated that Law 15.075/2024 enabled surplus transfers and Decree 12.362/2025 introduced royalty incentives for round zero projects. However, Petrobras has “increasingly requested local construction requirements even for projects without contractual obligations”.
Rystad Energy has indicated that the oil fields “Albacora (P-88) and Marlim Sul/Leste (P-86), both round zero assets, now face local content expectations despite lacking formal mandates”.
This approach, the Norway-based consultancy firm reported, “aims to sustain Brazilian fabrication capacity while supporting the possibility of increasing local content in more complex projects”.
For upcoming projects, including P-81 and P-87 (SEAP 1 and 2) and P-91 (Buzios 12), “local content negotiations will influence contractor selection and execution approaches,” the firm said.
Across Brazil, Petrobras plans 40 new wells between 2026 and 2030. Fourteen wells will be drilled in the South and Southeast margins, and 11 elsewhere. The company highlighted activity in the Santos and Campos basins, including formation tests in Aram and an exploratory well next to Marlim Sul.
According to Brazil Energy Insights, Petrobras had opened a new tender for the Albacora (P-88) floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel under a Build, Operate and Transfer (BOT) model, with eight pre-qualified competitors.
The Albacora P-88, located 110 km east of Cabo de São Tomé in the Campos Basin, is expected to produce 120,000 barrels per day from the pre-salt Forno reservoir, with operations expected after 2030.
Petrobras is also advancing development in the nearby Marlim Sul/Leste (P-86) area, connecting new FPSOs to existing infrastructure to boost production from the pre-salt layer.
Rystad Energy said it anticipates 15 additional awards through 2030, with Petrobras’ future projects potentially trending toward 150,000 to 180,000 barrels per day.
