FIRST PRE-SALT BID ROUND AUTHORIZED

First Pre-Salt Bid Round

The Brazilian National Council on Energy Policy ("CNPE") has officially authorized Brazil's oil and gas regulatory body, ANP, to hold the "First Pre-Salt Bid Round" in October of this year, which will be subject to the production sharing regime.

The authorization was published today in Brazil's Official Gazette pursuant to CNPE Resolution No. 4/2013 ("Resolution"). According to the Resolution, only areas in the Santos Basin (ultra-deep water), within the Libra Prospect (coordinates below), will be offered in this First Pre-Salt Bid Round.

LIBRA Area Polygon (Datum SAD69)

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ANP's General Director, Magda Chambriard, announced that the First Pre-Salt Bid Round will possibly occur during the second fortnight of October in Brasília, instead of Rio de Janeiro and the bidding documents may be published next week.

Summary of ANP Round 11

Thirty E&P companies successfully acquired concession rights during ANP Round 11, which took place on May 14th in Rio de Janeiro.

A record-setting 2.8 billion Reais ("R$") were offered as signing bonuses, surpassing the government's expectations. Also, the highest ever single signing bonus was offered: R$345.9 million for Block FZA-M-57 (Amazon River Basin, on the northern coast), by a consortium comprised of Total (operator), Petrobras, and BP. Finally, approximately R$7 billion will be invested as work programs in the blocks that have been awarded.

A summary of the results can be downloaded here.

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