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Petrobras studies are a 'victory' for Amapa, says governor

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Governor met with firms during oil and gas event in Rio

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Calçoene and Santana most likely locations for base

By Fabio Teixeira

RIO DE JANEIRO, Oct 30 (Reuters) - Brazil's Petrobras

has authorized studies for a logistics center in the

Amazonian state of Amapa, where the state-run oil firm started

exploring in a promising offshore block last week, state

Governor Clecio Luis told Reuters.

The company's logistics subsidiary Transpetro will do the

studies, Luis said, adding the center would support Petrobras

operations in the event of a major discovery.

Petrobras but did not provide more details. Previously

Petrobras Chief Executive Magda Chambriard said that if there is

a major find, the state-run oil firm could start production in

about seven years.

Petrobras is not looking only at Amapa for potential sites,

but the studies are a "victory" for the state as it seeks to

attract investments, Luis said on the sidelines of the OTC

industry event in Rio de Janeiro.

During the event, the governor had a joint meeting with

about 20 firms, according to a person who attended, including

representatives from SBM Offshore, Siemens,

Subsea 7 ( ACGYF ) and Technip FMC, who provide services for the

oil industry.

Firms signaled they will look into setting up shop in Amapa, he

told Reuters in a late Wednesday interview.

"We're working very hard to prepare the workforce, to

regularize areas, to guarantee incentives and to change

legislation if necessary," Luis said.

ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS

Last week Brazil's environmental agency Ibama gave Petrobras the

green light to drill an exploratory well in Foz do Amazonas, off

the coast of Oiapoque, in Amapa. The drilling should last around

five months.

The area is considered Petrobras' most promising oil

frontier, sharing geology with nearby Guyana, where ExxonMobil ( XOM )

is developing huge fields.

The license has been celebrated by Amapa's politicians and the

federal government, but criticized by environmental groups who

worry about possible impacts on Amapa's Indigenous population

and pressure to deforest more of the state's well-preserved

Amazon rainforest.

SMALL TOWN COULD RECEIVE CENTER

One of the least developed states in Brazil, home to around

800,000 people, Amapa could see a dramatic change in its

fortunes if Petrobras starts production there, said Luis, who

hopes to use royalties to remake the local economy.

While Petrobras is operating out of Oiapoque for the

exploration phase, they would need a second base for the

production phase, the governor said. He added that the most

likely cities for that purpose would be Calçoene and Santana,

far down the coast.

Oiapoque is surrounded by environmental reserves and

Indigenous lands, which would make it difficult to develop a

major logistics center, said Luis.

Calçoene, a small town of about 11,000 people between

Oiapoque and state capital Macapa, has ample space for

development and is the closest to other blocks Petrobras has in

the region.

Santana, a city of around 118,000, is close to Macapa and

already has logistics infrastructure that could be expanded,

said Luis. He gave no timeline for the studies to conclude.