EEUU no sabe qué hacer con todo el petróleo que tiene Read more here: http://www.elnuevoherald.com/noticias/a-fondo/article12260882.html#storylink=cpy
Brazil's Libra round a pre-salt "lab test"
October's auction of the Libra oil field will be a pre-salt "laboratory test" for the Brazilian government as it seeks to expand ultra-deepwater drilling, a consultant has told BNamericas.
The field in the Santos basin, off Brazil's southeast coast, will be the only area on offer during the October 21 round.
It will be the private sector's first chance to participate in Brazil's pre-salt blocks, though firms may only hold a minority non-operating interest.
"Libra is going to be a laboratory test for pre-salt to see if the current model can work," said Arthur Pimentel, director of Rio de Janeiro-based oil consultancy A&P.
Only eleven firms will participate in the auction after companies such as BG (LSE: BG), ExxonMobil (NYSE: XOM) and BP (LSE: BP) withdrew their initial interest ahead of the September 18 registration deadline.
Under current rules, Brazil's federal energy major Petrobras (NYSE: PBR) has sole operating rights of the country's pre-salt fields. But according to Pimentel, that could change at future bid rounds.
"International companies are looking to see how it [Libra] pans out," he said. "The important factor is that nothing is stopping the government from redesigning the pre-salt framework for the next auction to make conditions more favorable for the market."
The first of a two-part interview with Pimentel can be seen in this week's Oil & Gas Perspectives for subscribers.