EXCLUSIVE-Petrobras bids to operate Galp’s Mopane oil field in Namibia

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By Marta Nogueira

ARACAJU, Brazil, July 26 (Reuters) – Brazil’s state-run oil firm Petrobras has made a non-binding offer to buy a major stake in Galp Energia’s huge oil offshore discovery in Namibia, Petrobras Exploration and Production Director Sylvia dos Anjos told Reuters on Friday.

If accepted, the bid would make Petrobras the operator of the Mopane oil and gas field, which has at least 10 billion barrels of oil equivalent according to estimates, said Anjos in her first interview after taking over the role last month.

Petrobras is seeking opportunities abroad due to difficulty getting environmental licenses to explore new areas in Brazil, Anjos said. The firm has hit stiff resistance from Indigenous groups and environmental regulators slowing its efforts to drill in promising offshore areas near the mouth of the Amazon River.

Workers at environmental agency Ibama have also been

slow-walking all licensing

this year due to a labor dispute.

More than

12 oil companies

, including Exxon and Shell have expressed interest in buying a 40% stake in Galp Energia’s oil field, Reuters previously reported. Anjos did not say whether the bid was to buy the full 40% or a smaller share.

“We are the best deep-water operators,” said Anjos. “If they don’t choose us, it’s their loss.”

(Reporting by Marta Nogeuira Writing by Fabio Teixeira Editing by Brad Haynes)

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