Petrobras announces oil discovery off Brazilian coast

Brazil's state-controlled oil and gas giant Petrobras announced Wednesday it had discovered good quality oil off the country's northeastern coast.

The company said traces of oil were found during the drilling of the first well in ultradeep waters in the Sergipe-Alagoas Basin.

The 1-BRSA-851-SES well, also known as Barra, is located in the block SEAL-M-426, 58 km off the coast of the state of Sergipe. The water depth in the area is 2,341 meters.

Petrobras is the operator of the block, with 60 percent stakes in the business, while IBV Brasil holds the remaining 40 percent stakes. The consortium will continue the exploration of the block, drilling new wells in the area.

The oil found in the 1-BRSA-851-SES well is reported to boast similar quality to the oil found in the Campos Basin, off Brazil's southeastern coast, where a large share of Brazil's oil reserves is located.

In addition, Petrobras managed to confirm the existence of large oil reserves in the more distant parts of the Sergipe-Alagoas Basin.

Source: Xinhua