Brazil Oil Production

Production: the fastest growth outside the Americas' shale

Brazil is one of the main sources of new non-OPEC supply, alongside the United States, Guyana and Canada. Its growth comes almost entirely from large floating production, storage and offloading vessels (FPSOs) moored over pre-salt reservoirs in the Santos and Campos basins, 200–300 km off the coast of Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo. Each new FPSO adds 100,000–225,000 b/d within a year of start-up, so national output moves in steps as units come online.

In 2025 crude output averaged 3.770 mb/d (3.358 mb/d in 2024), and December 2025 alone reached 4.02 mb/d. In August 2026 crude production was 4.615 mb/d, 18.4% higher than a year earlier, and total oil and gas output passed 6 million barrels of oil equivalent per day for the first time.

The pre-salt fields and Petrobras

The pre-salt reservoirs lie below a thick salt layer, 5–7 km under the sea surface. They were discovered in 2006 and now supply about 80% of Brazilian output. The most important fields are:

• Búzios: the largest field in Brazil, producing 1.17 mb/d in August 2026. The P-79 platform (180,000 b/d) started on 1 May 2026, lifting installed capacity at Búzios to about 1.33 mb/d, according to Petrobras.
• Tupi (formerly Lula): the first giant pre-salt field, in production since 2010.
• Mero: Brazil's largest gas producer, where the Alexandre de Gusmão FPSO started in 2025.

State-controlled Petrobras operates, alone or with partners, about 88% of national output. It produced a record 2.40 mb/d of oil in 2025 and started five new FPSOs during the year. In the second quarter of 2026 its Brazilian oil and NGL output was 2.69 mb/d, 15% higher than a year before. Investors can follow the company through its US-listed shares (NYSE:PBR); see our guide to oil stocks and the oil price.

Crude grades: medium and sweet

Pre-salt crudes are medium-gravity and low in sulphur, which makes them attractive to Asian and European refiners. According to the state company PPSA, Búzios is 28.6° API with 0.32% sulphur and Tupi is 30.5° API with 0.35% sulphur. They are sold at a differential to Brent, which serves as the pricing reference for most Atlantic Basin crude. For the quality terms, see API gravity and sweet vs sour crude.

Exports and destinations

Brazil exported 726 million barrels of crude in 2025 (about 1.98 mb/d), 10% more than in 2024, according to trade ministry data compiled by StoneX. China took 45%. The war with Iran from late February 2026 and the near-closure of the Strait of Hormuz pushed Asian buyers towards Atlantic Basin crude: Kpler estimated Chinese imports of Brazilian oil at about 1.3 mb/d in January–May 2026, almost double the 2025 average. Petrobras later diversified its sales: in the second quarter of 2026 China took 35% of its crude exports, India 22% and Europe 18%.

Brazil and OPEC+

Brazil is not an OPEC member and has no production quota. In February 2025 its National Energy Council approved joining the OPEC+ Charter of Cooperation, a forum for dialogue that was first announced in November 2023. The energy ministry said membership "does not involve participation in decisions aimed at reducing oil production". In practice, Brazilian growth works against OPEC+ efforts to manage supply. Read more in our OPEC+ explainer.

Policy in 2026: export tax and new frontiers

• Crude export tax. To fund cuts in fuel taxes after the oil price spike, Provisional Measure 1,340 of 12 March 2026 imposed a 12% tax on crude exports. The measure lapsed on 9 July 2026, but the foreign trade board reinstated the 12% rate from 10 July for 60 days and then extended it. Courts briefly suspended the tax for producers' association members in late August 2026, before an appeals court reinstated it on 31 August.
• Equatorial Margin. Environmental agency Ibama licensed Petrobras to drill block FZA-M-059 off Amapá, near the mouth of the Amazon, on 20 October 2025. Petrobras reported a hydrocarbon discovery in the Morpho well in August 2026 and a second oil-bearing interval in October 2026, without disclosing volumes.

Brazil's growing supply is one of the reasons forecasters expected a surplus before 2026. To see how such supply trends feed into prices, read what moves oil prices, or compare Brazil with the other producers on the top oil producing countries page.