Brazil approves oil drilling near mouth of Amazon River

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🗞️ Driving the news: Brazil has approved a license for state-run oil company Petrobras to drill for oil near the mouth of the Amazon River, in a highly controversial decision just weeks before the country hosts the COP30 UN climate summit in the Amazonian city of Belém
• The drilling will target the Equatorial Margin, a potentially oil-rich offshore area. Petrobras has been cleared to begin operations immediately, with exploration expected to take up to five months

🔭 The context: The license comes after a five-year dispute and an earlier rejection in 2023 by Brazil’s environmental agency, IBAMA, which had cited insufficient safeguards for wildlife and coastal communities
• The new approval follows what officials called a "rigorous environmental licensing process"
• President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who once championed biofuels, has shifted towards supporting offshore oil as a funding source for Brazil’s energy transition and social programs 

🌍 Why it matters for the planet: Drilling near the Amazon delta — a critical biodiversity hotspot — raises acute risks for marine ecosystems and Indigenous communities
• The decision also sends conflicting signals as Brazil prepares to host COP30, a summit centred on accelerating fossil fuel phase-out
• Environmental groups warn the move undermines global climate goals, exposes the Amazon to oil spill risks, and contradicts Lula's green credentials
• The debate reflects broader tensions between energy sovereignty and decarbonisation in emerging economies

⏭️ What's next: Petrobras may begin drilling within days. Environmental organisations, including the Climate Observatory, are mobilising opposition and planning campaigns during COP30
• Brazil faces international scrutiny over its climate credibility, and Lula’s administration will likely need to balance domestic energy ambitions with its global role as summit host and climate negotiator

💬 One quote: "This license is sabotage to COP30. The government is acting against humanity by betting on more fossil fuels and global warming." – Suely Araujo, Climate Observatory

📈 One stat: The Equatorial Margin is estimated to hold up to 14 billion barrels of oil, making it one of Brazil’s most promising—but environmentally sensitive — hydrocarbon frontiers

See on illuminem's Data Hub™ the environmental performance of Petrobras and its peers TotalEnergies and Equinor

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