On Wednesday (June 3), four representatives of Petrobras took part in the World Gas Conference (WGC 2015) in Paris. The conference is the largest natural gas event in the world, bringing together leading specialists in the sector every three years. The participants presented an overview of the natural gas industry in the Southern Cone region and discussed fertilizer production, investments and tax regimes for conventional and unconventional gas production.

Consultant Gisele Mello Senra Rodrigues and administrator Gisela Andrade de Oliveira, who work in Petrobras’ Gas & Electricity and International areas, respectively, emphasized that investments in Brazilian pre-salt and Argentinean unconventional gas, as well as new developments in the sector in Bolivia, will be decisive in guaranteeing natural gas supplies in the Southern Cone (Brazil, Argentina, Bolivia, Uruguay and Chile) in the coming years.

Cristiane Lodi, a coordinator in Petrobras’ Gas & Electricity Area, stressed that operational experience gained in fertilizer production, the use of best manufacturing practices and the adoption of state-of-the-art technology for ammonia and urea production have resulted in projects that are extremely economical in terms of power consumption.

Also yesterday, Marcos de Freitas Sugaya, a consultant working for Petrobras’ Exploration and Production Area and a member of the International Gas Union (IGU), the organization responsible for the event, presided over two sessions – “Gas-on-gas competition and upstream investment” and “Fiscal regimes for the production of conventional and unconventional gas” – which discussed pricing policies, contract models and tax regimes for natural gas exploration and production.