Possible Outside Investments In The Brazil Offshore Oil Discoveries

Cambridge Energy Research Associates is estimating that the Tupi-area fields in Brazil will cost between $200-$240 billion to develop. As reported in Bloomberg, labor and equipment costs are rising as oil prices increase. Recently, deepwater rigs have received rents of $600,000 a day. As a result of the huge project, Brazil and Petroleo Brasileiro SA will need international partners with lots of capital. Nonetheless, the effort and cost might be worth it given that the offshore fields are expected to hold up to 50 billion barrels, or $6 trillion of petroleum at today's prices. If estimates are correct, the wells could help to make Brazil a top 10 oil producer.

As discussed before, Petrobras has already leased approximately 80% of the deepest-drilling offshore rigs. Astonishingly, the company also plans to hire 14,000 engineers, geologist, and drillers to help with the project. They are also buying new rigs and production platforms. As periphery plays in the short-term, this is certainly good news for the drilling contractors, such as Transocean (RIG), Nobel (NE), and Nabors (NBR). For longer-term investment, some capital-intensive E&P oil companies such as Exxon Mobil (XOM) should do well, although these companies may require direct involvement to see any benefit.