Petrobras found “large accumulations” of oil in its Barra well in the Sergipe-Alagoas Basin, the Rio de Janeiro-based company said in a regulatory filing today. The discovery at a depth of 2,341 meters (7,680 feet) of water has larger volumes of oil than the Guaricema and Dourado fields in shallower waters of the same basin, Petrobras said.
“Wherever they’re going, discoveries highlight more potential, especially offshore,” said Robert Van Batenburg, head of equities research at Louis Capital Markets in New York. “The question now is the capital expenditures to develop these wells.”
IBV Brasil Petroleo Ltda., a unit of Bharat Petroleum Corp. and Videocon Industries Ltd., has a 40 percent stake in block BM-SEAL-11 where Petrobras drilled the Barra well. Petrobras, which owns the remaining 60 percent, said it will drill more exploration wells in the area.
