The never-ending story of oil exploration in Brazil’s Amazon

In what has been dubbed a “historic” referendum, Ecuadorians voted by a large majority to ban the extraction of oil from parts of the country’s Amazon rainforest. At the same time, however, Brazil is waging an internal war over the same issue. One eye is on the high potential profits, and the other is on severe environmental risks. 

But the controversy over oil exploration in the Brazilian Amazon is not new, being a subject of debate, irregularities, crimes, and deaths for decades.

The most recent flare-up of the Amazon oil debate concerns plans by state-controlled giant Petrobras to drill at oil reserves in the so-called Equatorial Margin — a region which encompasses the northern and northeastern coasts of Brazil, oil fields in Suriname and Guyana, and exploration areas close to the mouth of the Amazon River. It is one of the world’s most attractive new oil frontiers.

These reserves are considered a top priority for Petrobras as pre-salt reserves in Brazil’s Southeast are starting to be tapped out. The company recently announced a production decrease of 100,000 barrels per day between 2023 and 2027.  

But Brazil’s Environment Ministry and environmental protection agency Ibama argue that there are few studies on the risks of drilling in the Equatorial Margin, and that any spill could be very dangerous for a region rich in biodiversity.

Ibama denied Petrobras permission to drill in May, but the company — and the federal government — is looking for other solutions. The National Oil Agency allocated more money for oil investment in the Equatorial Margin than anywhere else over the next five years, and the Solicitor General’s Office issued a legal opinion suggesting Ibama could authorize exploration without a preliminary assessment of the area.

A 100-year-old story

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