On June 28, 2018, the National Agency of Petroleum, Natural Gas and Biofuels ("ANP"), published the draft tender protocol for the 5th Bid Round under the production sharing regime ("5th Pre-Salt Round"), with the objective of establishing the procedures and rules for participating in the bid, as well as making available the production sharing agreement drafts, the preliminary schedule and information regarding the offered areas.
The 5th Pre-Salt Round will offer four areas located in the Campos and Santos Basins: Saturno; Titã; Pau-Brasil; and Sudoeste de Tartaruga Verde. As detailed in another legal update, Petrobras will have the preference to operate, with a minimum participating interest of 30 percent, in Sudoeste de Tartaruga Verde.
According to the schedule of the draft tender protocol, the technical data package is already available and, in order to gain access interested parties are required to: (i) fill out an electronic registration form; (ii) present proof of payment of the participation fee; and (iii) submit the confidentiality agreement in accordance with the terms of the draft tender protocol, together with the corporate documentation and power-of-attorney granted to the accredited representative before the ANP. Below you will find the schedule:
|
Event |
Date |
|
Publication of the draft tender protocol and production sharing agreement drafts |
June 28, 2018 |
|
Commencement of the period for delivery of documentation for expression of interest, qualification, and payment of the participation fee |
June 28, 2018 |
|
Technical data package availability |
June 28, 2018 |
|
Deadline for comments on the draft tender protocol and the production sharing agreement drafts, and end of public consultation |
July 11, 2018 |
|
Public hearing (city of Rio de Janeiro) |
July 13, 2018 |
|
Technical seminar |
By August 31, 2018 |
|
Publication of tender protocol and production sharing agreement models |
August 9, 2018 |
|
Environmental and fiscal-legal seminars |
By August 31, 2018 |
|
Deadline for delivery of documentation on expression interest, qualification, and payment of participation fee |
August 24, 2018 |
|
Deadline to present the bid offer guarantees |
September 13, 2018 |
|
Public session for the presentation of offers |
September 28, 2018 |
|
Award process and ratification of the bidding |
By October 11, 2018 |
|
Deadline to submit the following documents related to: (i) the signing of the production sharing agreements; (ii) additional bid guarantee, when necessary; and (iii) qualification of the affiliate appointed for the signing of the contract, should the need arise |
By November 26, 2018 |
|
Deadline for payment of the signing bonus and proof of payment |
By November 26, 2018 |
|
Signing of the production sharing agreement |
By December 19, 2018 |
It is worth mentioning that the minimum profit oil percentages, the signing bonus amounts and the minimum local content percentages are the same as those defined by the National Energy Policy Council (CNPE) in May, 2018, as covered in our legal update on this matter.
The draft tender protocol and the production sharing agreement drafts – with and without the participation of Petrobras – are available at ANP's webpage (in Portuguese only). All documents will be under public consultation until July 11, 2018, so that contributions may be made, from both the industry and the general public.
We will continue to monitor the development of the 5th Pre-Salt Round, and will keep you posted through our legal updates.