Brazil’s Petrorecôncavo eyeing gas infrastructure, M&A opportunities

Brazil’s Petrorecôncavo is evaluating investment opportunities in natural gas infrastructure and eyeing the M&A landscape, the oil firm's commercial and M&A VP, João Vitor Moreira, told BNamericas. 

In July, Petrorecôncavo began operating its first gas treatment unit (UTG). Located in Bahia, the São Roque UTG has processing capacity of up to 400,000m3/d and a direct connection to the gas pipeline grid of Bahiagás, which is the state's distribution concessionaire. 

The asset is the company's first investment in its own gas processing infrastructure.

“We’re evaluating other potential investments in order to reduce costs and continue developing natural gas reserves. This is the fuel for the energy transition, and the northeast has great potential,” said Moreira. 

In addition to the Recôncavo basin in Bahia, Petrorecôncavo operates dozens of concessions in the Potiguar basin in Rio Grande do Norte state. 

Its total production is currently around 27,000boe/d, with natural gas accounting for 40% of the volume. 

“Our public reserves reports lead us to figures of more than 30,000boe/d over the next two years,” said Moreira. “It's a reasonable percentage increase, given that we're also fighting against the decline of the fields.”

The company maintains a vertical model, with its own drilling rigs. There are currently three rigs drilling, while 12 work-over rigs are working to increase production. 

Petrorecôncavo's portfolio has grown substantially in recent years thanks to the assets acquired from federal oil firm Petrobras. 

Moreira said that, after going through the phase of paying for acquisitions, the company now has a low level of debt and great investment potential. 

“We’ve shown great success in Petrobras' divestment program, and we’re monitoring M&A opportunities,” said the executive, adding that his focus is on the Brazilian onshore sector.