The president of Petrobras, Jean Paul Prates, met, this Thursday (9/3), with the Minister of Mines and Energy of Colombia, Irene Vélez Torres, during CERAWeek programming in Houston, Texas (USA).

Jean Paul Prates commented on the challenges that unite Brazil and Colombia as countries rich in renewable resources and the responsibility to preserve the Amazon Forest, the largest tropical forest in the world, which occupies the territory of both countries.

The president of Petrobras highlighted Petrobras' environmental projects to protect the forest and reinforced the need to combine efforts by the energy industry and governments in favor of environmental preservation. He cited the Petrobras operation in Urucu, in the Amazon, as a case of success in developing activities in the oil and gas sector and preserving the environment.

The two authorities also discussed prospects for developing natural gas production in the Tayrona block, in Colombia, a priority area that Petrobras owns in partnership with Ecopetrol.

Recently, in July 2022, an accumulation of natural gas was discovered at the site through the Uchuva-1 well, drilled in deep water, 32 km from the coast and 76 km from the city of Santa Marta, in a water depth of approximately 830 meters. More wells are expected to be drilled over the next two years.

The discovery increases prospects for the development of a new exploration and production frontier in Colombia and paves the way for new initiatives to make better use of oil and gas reserves in the region.