Petrobras Confirms Large Natural gas Discovery

Brazilian state-run oil firm Petroleo Brasileiro SA has made natural gas discoveries in six deepwater fields in the Sergipe Basin, it said in a regulatory filing on Monday.

Petrobras said it is now looking at drawing up a budget plan to finance production from the potential wells that were discovered "in the last few years."

Newspaper O Estado de Sao Paulo reported on Sunday that the find was the largest since the sub-salt discoveries in 2006, and that Petrobras could extract up to 20 million cubic meters of natural gas per day, equivalent to one third of total Brazilian production.

According to O Estado, the find could help deliver the "cheap energy shock" to Brazil promised by Economy Minister Paulo Guedes, his vision to reduce the cost of natural gas by up to 50% and "reindustrialize" the country.