ExxonMobil, TotalEnergies Win Cargoes in Brazil Government Oil Auction

By Brazil Stock Guide – Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) and TotalEnergies SE (TTE) won crude cargoes totaling about 2 million barrels in Brazil’s latest auction of government-owned oil, according to state-run Pré-Sal Petróleo SA, or PPSA.

ExxonMobil acquired a cargo of roughly 1 million barrels from the Bacalhau field, with loading scheduled for late November 2026. TotalEnergies secured another cargo of about 1 million barrels from the Búzios field, produced through the Almirante Barroso floating production, storage and offloading vessel, or FPSO. That shipment is expected to load in early November.

PPSA did not immediately disclose the prices paid for the cargoes. Under its spot-sale procedures, transaction prices are released 15 days after each cargo is loaded.

Around 6 Million Barrels Offered

The ninth spot auction offered roughly 5 million barrels of crude from Búzios and an additional cargo of about 1 million barrels from Bacalhau.

Only about 2 million barrels were awarded in the auction. Cargoes that did not receive winning bids will be offered again on Oct. 7, PPSA said.

Other companies participating in the auction included CNOOC Ltd. (883 HK), Equinor ASA (EQNR), Galp Energia SGPS SA (GALP PL), Petróleo Brasileiro SA, or Petrobras (PETR4 BZ), PetroChina Co. (857 HK) and PRIO SA (PRIO3 BZ).

Bids were priced against dated Brent and opened in real time during a session attended by representatives of the participating companies, according to PPSA.

Brazil’s Government Oil Sales

PPSA manages the Brazilian government’s share of oil and natural gas produced under the country’s production-sharing regime, which applies to some of the largest fields in the pre-salt region.

Under those contracts, the government receives part of the production directly in crude rather than solely through taxes and royalties. PPSA is responsible for marketing that oil on behalf of the federal government.

The latest auction forms part of a growing program of spot sales of crude received as the Union’s share of production.

The cargoes came from two major pre-salt developments. Búzios is one of Brazil’s largest producing oil fields and a key contributor to Petrobras’ production growth, while Bacalhau is operated by Equinor and is one of the largest international oil-company-led projects in Brazil’s pre-salt province.