Brazil will continue to be key investment area for ExxonMobil – CEO

Brazil will continue to be a key investment area for ExxonMobil, local CEO Alberto Ferrin told the Latin American Energy Economics Meeting (ELAEE) in Rio de Janeiro. 

“When you think about all the exploration enablers, you need good rocks, good commercial terms, a stable fiscal system, technology advancement, great partnerships, and all of those ingredients are present in Brazil, no doubt,” he said.  

“And for ExxonMobil having all of this in place obviously means this is a scenario that we’ll be actively working in in the decades to come.” 

The US oil major currently has a stake in 17 exploration blocks in the Campos, Santos and Sergipe-Alagoas basins, with partners Petrobras, Equinor, Galp, Qatar Energy, Enauta, Murphy and PPSA. 

Of the 17 assets, Exxon operates 14.

ExxonMobil also holds an interest in the Bacalhau field, operated by Equinor, in partnership with Galp and PPSA.

Ferrin believes Exxon’s successful experience in Guyana may be replicated in other areas of South America, such as Brazil’s Equatorial and Atlantic margins. 

“We’re studying to understand those basins, getting data. We see some prospects coming, some drilling activity and hopefully the development of rich hydrocarbon provinces,” he said.  

But the executive stressed that stability and predictability are needed to enable large, long-term investments

“Brazil has a positive history of contract sanctity and stability, and we like doing business in countries like this,” Ferrin said.