The ANP initiated a public consultation, for a period of 30 days, on a proposal to revise ANP Technical Regulation 3/2015 (approved by ANP Resolution 50/2015), which establishes the rules for the application of resources of the Research, Development and Innovation (RD & I) in oil and natural gas exploration and production contracts. The purpose of the review is to improve and simplify the application of the RD & I clause resources and to strengthen the innovation outcome in the use of these resources.

The set of proposed changes, in general, broadens the possibilities of research institutions, makes possible the execution of new models of projects and programs and generates immediate benefits, with a positive impact for the fulfillment of the investment obligation in RD & I without being restricted rights and interests of research institutions, oil companies, other economic agents of the sector and society in general.

The initiative of the ANP aims to fill gaps and give greater clarity to some provisions of the regulation; eliminate or mitigate constraints and requirements that are excessive or difficult to meet by oil companies and monitored by the Agency and extend the reach of some devices, expanding the alternatives of activities and expenses that may be considered in RD & I projects. The proposal also foresees the possibility of contributing resources of the RD & I clause in the so-called priority programs, in order to allow the allocation of part of the resources of the clause for investments in startups.

What is the RD & I Clause 

The clause of investment in research, development and innovation (clause RD & I) constant of contracts for exploration, development and production of oil and natural gas aims to stimulate research and development of new technologies for the sector, which is one of the tasks of ANP (Law nº 9,478 / 1997).

In the concession contracts, the RD & I clause establishes that concessionaires must carry out qualified expenses such as research and development in an amount corresponding to 1% (one percent) of gross production revenue from fields that pay Special Participation (PE), financial compensation due by companies that exploit oil / gas fields with high production volume and / or high profitability.In production-sharing and onerous assignment contracts, the value of the RD & I Clause obligation corresponds to 1% (one percent) and 0.5% (one-half percent) of the annual gross revenue of the fields belonging to the blocks detailed and delimited in the respective contracts.