On May 21, the ANP held the workshop "Dinamização da Fase de Exploração"(Boosting the Exploration Phase). The hybrid event brought together oil and gas exploration and production (E&P) concessionaires, industry associations, experts, and other stakeholders interested in the competitiveness of the Brazilian energy landscape.

The goal was to debate measures to accelerate the exploratory phase—the first stage of E&P contracts—and make the Minimum Exploratory Program (PEM) more efficient.

During the workshop opening, ANP Director Pietro Mendes highlighted that while there are currently more than 400 contracts in the exploration phase, this volume has not translated into a proportional increase in exploratory activities. "Well drilling, the submission of discovery evaluation plans, and declarations of commerciality have been occurring late. This compromises the efficiency of the exploratory cycle and the booking of oil and gas reserves in the country," he stated.

According to Mendes, this is why the ANP began planning regulations to incentivize and boost this phase. "The goal is to identify the necessary measures to make the exploration phase more efficient, focusing on optimizing available time and technological advances in the segment. I hope that through this workshop we can build this jointly, with the participation of regulated agents," he said.

Among the key topics discussed at the event were the optimization of contract timelines and bottleneck reduction; technological innovations applied to the E&P segment; decarbonization challenges in the oil and gas industry; and performance improvement in the initial stages of contracts.

The contributions gathered during the workshop will be analyzed by the ANP and may be incorporated into the ongoing Regulatory Impact Analysis (AIR), which aims to support the definition of alternatives to boost the exploration phase.

Contributions on the topic can also be sent to the ANP via the form available at https://www.gov.br/anp/pt-br/centrais-de-conteudo/apresentacoes-palestras/2026/workshop-dinamizacao-da-fase-de-exploracao. Watch the recording of the event on the ANP's YouTube channel: https://youtu.be/lwPUyYOcOG8.

What is the exploration phase?

Exploration is the first phase of E&P contracts, starting upon contract signature. During this phase, the concession areas are referred to as blocks, and companies conduct studies and activities (such as seismic surveys and well drilling) to detect the presence of oil and/or natural gas in sufficient quantities to make extraction economically viable. The PEM is the program that aggregates the minimum activities committed to by the companies to be carried out during this phase.