Petrobras, in response to written notice received from Securities and Exchange Commission of Brazil CVM, GEA-2/N 120/2010, wishes to clarify the news published today in the Brazilian Press, titled Petrobras declares a new discovery in the Santos Basin pre-salt  layer. The Company confirms that it notified the ANP (National Agency for Oil, Natural Gas and Biofuels) about the presence of hydrocarbons in the well 1-BRSA-594-SPS, located in the northern part of the BM-S-9 area, developed under the Guará Evaluation Plan. 

The Company further clarifies that the concession contracts executed with ANP requires that the Agency must be informed by the operator about any evidence of the presence of oil, natural gas or other hydrocarbons within the concession area.

This requirement is mandatory to all the companies which operate in Brazil. In this context, the consortium formed by Petrobras (45% - Operator), BG (30%) and Repsol (25%) notified the ANP, on March 9th, about the presence of hydrocarbons during the drilling activity in the aforementioned area. This notification merely represents a standard procedure required by  the Agency and does not represents a declaration of discovery nor any material fact, having no impact in Petrobrass stocks trade, considering the imprecision of the results which are still pending to be achieved.

Although the information represents a positive sign by itself, it is not conclusive. The West Polaris drilling rig will continue the activities in the well to gather more data and evidence. The information could become relevant in the light of new studies and data gathered during the testing and, if that be the case, will be announced to the market and to the regulatory agencies.

Source: Petrobras

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