The global energy market has been experiencing a surge in new plans to develop downstream capacity. That has become especially evident in South America, which has plans to revive its energy sector following a few tough years trying to compete with other markets around the world. Now, Petrobras, Brazil’s federal oil company, is consulting with energy majors on a planned $17 billion program to expand the nation’s downstream capacity, laying the foundation for a new era in the South American energy market.
The Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul has launched an innovation investment catalog
The Brazilian state recently launched an innovation investment catalog with over 50 opportunities in areas such as semiconductors, venture capital, green energy, technology parks, and talent development. The astonishing catalog presented by the Rio Grande do Sul state presents approximately $1.3 billion in projects and actions focused on innovation.
These proposed projects are in the initial development stage, with $3.7 billion already committed to projects that are currently underway or have passed the initial planning phase. Brazil has been ensnared by political controversy for the past few years, with the nation’s former President, Jair Bolsonaro, being sentenced to jail for attempting to block the new President, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, from taking power following the 2022 vote.
The new innovation investment catalog was produced by Brazil’s InvestRS
The material came in the form of an ebook available for download and was produced by the state’s investment promotion agency, InvestRS, which was created only a year ago, in partnership with the Secretariat of Innovation, Science and Technology (SICT) and the Rio Grande do Sul Network of Innovation Environments (Reginp).
“The portfolio serves as a guide for entrepreneurs, students wishing to study or move to the state, large investment projects, and others interested in the innovation sector. The material makes the state’s potential tangible, highlighting its assets and concrete opportunities in different areas,” – InvestRS president Rafael Prikladnicki
Petrobras is consulting the market on new Floating Production, Storage, and Offloading projects
The Brazilian state oil company has turned to the international market to consult on a list of possible FSPO projects that could strengthen the nation’s downstream sector amid an increase in energy demand.
The new strategy outlined by Petrobras aims to increase the recovery factor of oil and gas reserves in the Campos basin, with a priority being avoiding the exceedingly high costs of constructing new Floating Production, Storage, and Offloading units.
The company has noted that eight floating production units that previously operated in the Marlim field have been replaced by the new Anita Garibaldi and Anna Nery FPSOs. Meanwhile, the state-owned oil company is carrying out an RFI regarding several FPSOs and has developed a plan to reuse old ones in new locations. While Europe’s downstream sector has seen several companies expanding and upgrading operations, Brazil is only getting started with its plans.
“We’re incorporating adaptations made in the Sergipe deepwater [SEAP] FPSOs, which is our first BOT in many years.” – Wagner Victer, executive manager of structuring programs at Petrobras
The global downstream sector has seen a surge in new investments
The Brazilian downstream innovation and investment plans are a step in the right direction to upgrading the nation’s downstream capacity. Other energy-rich nations have similar plans to boost investments in the sector, like the United Arab Emirates, which recently outlined its expansion plans led by the nation’s oil company, ADNOC. As the global energy market has been facing calls to diversify its market portfolio, Brazil has taken the initiative and is developing a framework to boost the capacity of its downstream sector over the coming years as the market expands.
