Energy portal Upstreamonline.com reported overnight that eight companies have successfully registered to bid for the second pre-salt round, which will see the ANP offering four “unitisable” areas surrounding existing discoveries such as North of Carcara, South of Gato do Mato, Sapinhoa Surround and Southwest of Tartaruga Verde.
It said Carigali, Petrobras, ExxonMobil, Shell, Statoil, Total, Repsol Sinopec and Galp Energia have applied for the second round.
Upstreamonline.com said that according to the regulator, 11 companies have qualified to submit offers in the third pre-salt round.
It said the list includes Carigali. Petrobras, BP, ExxonMobil, Shell, Statoil, Total, Qatar Petroleum International (QPI), Repsol, Galp Energia and China National Oil & Gas Exploration & Development Corporation (CNODC).
The third round will feature another four pre-salt areas – Peroba, Pau Brasil, Alto de Cabo Frio Oeste and Alto de Cabo Frio Central.
The portal said of the 12 companies qualified to bid in both rounds, three – Galp Energia, QPI and CNODC – have registered as non-operators and will need to form consortia to participate.
Quoting a source, Upstreamonline.com said that the list is not final and that other companies may still be able to qualify for the rounds.
It said the ANP previously informed that 10 companies have shown interest in bidding in the second round, and 15 companies have signalled their wish to submit offers in the third.
The regulator is due to meet one more time on October 2 to review the remaining applications. China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) is understood to be one of the companies with pending requests to bid in the pre-salt rounds.
The ANP estimates that six of the eight areas to be auctioned off may hold a combined in place resource of 12.3 billion barrels oil equivalent.