The Brazilian national oil and gas company Petrobras has posted records in its 2020 annual production. Petrobras’ oil and gas production rose by 2.5% in 2020 to 2.84 mboe/d. Crude oil production in Brazil increased by 5% to 2.28 mb/d, spurred by a 45% surge in pre-salt production (up to 1.6 mb/d). Pre-salt production accounted for 66% of Petrobras’ total output in 2020. The previous records occurred in 2015 and were 2.79 Mboe/d and 2.23 mb/d of oil.
In addition, the Brazilian National Energy Policy Council (Conselho Nacional de Política Energética, CNPE) has approved 92 offshore exploration and production concession blocks for sale in the 17th bid round, which is scheduled in October 2021. The blocks are located in the maritime sedimentary basins of Potiguar, Campos, Santos and Pelotas, totalling 53,900 km² of area. In December 2020, the CNPE removed 32 offshore blocks from the sale due to environmental concerns.