Brazil’s government on Monday approved state-run oil giant Petrobras’ license request to drill for oil near the mouth of the Amazon River.
The move has been sharply criticized by environmental activists ahead of the COP30 UN climate talks in Brazil next month.
The Equatorial Margin deposits off the coast of Brazil are believed to be rich in oil and gas.
After a five-year battle the company was granted a license to drill in the area. The country’s environment agency IBAMA said the approval came after a “rigorous environmental licensing process.”
IBAMA initially rejected a similar Petrobras application in May 2023, citing inadequate plans to protect wildlife in the event of an oil spill.
Petrobras said drilling could begin immediately and would take up to five months.
Leftist President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has supported the plans, saying oil revenues would help finance Brazil’s climate change response. Brazilian Energy Minister Alexandre Silveira said the decision would protect “the future of our energy sovereignty.”
What have environmentalists said?
However, critics have condemned the government’s decision.
Observatorio do Clima (“Climate Observatory”), a network of environmental groups in Brazil, said the oil drilling license was a “sabotage” for the upcoming COP30 climate summit, which will take place in the Amazon city of Belém between 10 and 21 November.
Climate Observatory coordinator Sueli Araujo explained that the goal of COP30 is “the gradual elimination of fossil fuels”.
Araújo also accused the government of working against humanity by “promoting greater expansion” of fossil fuels and “betting on more global warming.”
Activists have also warned of the impact of drilling on the coast of the world’s largest tropical rainforest, which is home to many indigenous communities.
The company has rejected the claims and said its models show that a potential oil spill “would be unlikely to reach the coast” and would have “no direct impact” on indigenous communities.
Lula, who will turn 80 on October 27, supported the use of biofuels during his first two terms between 2003 and 2010.
However, this attitude has changed as offshore oil discoveries have helped the state of Rio de Janeiro fund many public functions from health to education.
Edited by: Carl Sexton