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Mobil Signs Second Deepwater Farm-In Agreement with Petrobras

20 July 1999

Mobil Signs Second Deepwater Farm-In Agreement with Petrobras

    FAIRFAX, Va.--July 20, 1999--Mobil Corporation announced today that its wholly owned subsidiary Mobil Exploracao e Desenvolvimento do Brasil Limitada has signed final agreements with Petroleo Brasileiro S.A. (Petrobras), the Brazilian national oil company, to participate in the exploration of a second deepwater block offshore Brazil.
    Mobil will have a 15-percent interest in Block BC-10 in the Campos Basin. Petrobras and Shell Brasil S.A. will each have 35-percent shares, with Esso Brasileira de Petroleo Ltda. having the remaining 15-percent interest. Located approximately 60 miles (100 kilometers) offshore on the continental shelf of the state of Rio de Janeiro, Block BC-10 ranges from 3000 to 7500 feet (1000 to 2500 meters) water depth. Work program in BC-10 includes seismic acquisition followed by exploration drilling. Shell is the operator on the block.
    Earlier today, Mobil announced it will lead a consortium that will explore Block BES-2 in the Espirito Santo Basin. Mobil, the lease operator with 35 percent, and Unocal Espirito Santo Ldta. with 30 percent, will join Petrobras at 35 percent.
    "We are very pleased to be participating with Petrobras and our other partners in the exploration of these very promising offshore blocks," said M.W. Scoggins, President, International Exploration & Producing, Mobil Oil Corporation. "Our position in BC-10, coupled with operatorship in BES-2 further to the north, provides Mobil an excellent position to play a major role in offshore Brazil exploration."
    In 1997, the government of Brazil opened its oil industry to foreign investment. As part of this process, Petrobras was permitted to retain selected offshore and onshore blocks with the remainder returned to the National Petroleum Agency (ANP) for bid rounds. Blocks BES-2 and BC-10 were two of the blocks retained by Petrobras, which then solicited farm-in partners to help it expedite exploration and potential development of these blocks.