Brazil’s Oil Output Jumps Year on Year, But Offshore Swings Persist

Key Points

• Brazil’s crude output rose 13.9% from a year earlier in November, even as it slipped from October’s record pace.
• A few pre-salt hubs now dominate national supply, making monthly numbers swing with platform operations.
• Gas volumes are growing, but only a fraction reaches buyers, and flaring remains a measurable inefficiency.

Brazil pumped an average 3.773 million barrels of crude oil per day in November, up 13.9% from the same month in 2024, according to the national petroleum regulator, ANP.

Yet the month also delivered a reminder of how operationally “lumpy” Brazil’s offshore boom can be: production fell 6.4% from October, after the country crossed 4 million barrels per day for the first time on a monthly average.

The shift was visible where it matters most. In November, Búzios remained the country’s largest oil-producing field at 744,300 barrels per day of crude. Mero led in gas at 40.80 million cubic meters per day.

The top oil-producing installation was the FPSO Almirante Tamandaré at Búzios, averaging 239,453 barrels per day, while the FPSO Marechal Duque de Caxias at Mero led gas with 12.83 million cubic meters per day.

When one of these mega-units slows for scheduled maintenance, well work, or commissioning cycles, the national totals move with it. In oil-equivalent terms, Brazil produced 4.921 million barrels of oil equivalent per day of oil and natural gas in November.

Brazil’s output dominated by pre-salt and offshore fields

Pre-salt output reached 3.913 million boe/d, or 79.6% of the national total, produced through 178 wells, including 3.024 million barrels per day of oil and 141.27 million cubic meters per day of gas.

Offshore fields accounted for 97.7% of oil output and 85.7% of gas output, underscoring just how concentrated the country’s supply has become.

Petrobras, operating alone or in consortium, accounted for 89.35% of production across 6,082 producing wells (539 offshore and 5,543 onshore).

The gas story is also more nuanced than the headline: Brazil produced 182.57 million cubic meters per day of gas in November, but only 61.87 million cubic meters per day were made available to the market. ANP reported a 96.9% utilization rate, with 5.71 million cubic meters per day flared.

For global readers, the takeaway is straightforward: Brazil is increasingly relevant as an Atlantic supplier, but its monthly output is still a function of disciplined operations and predictable rules, not political slogans.

Related coverage: Brazil’s Morning Call | Brazil’s Math-Learning Crisis Is No Longer A School Problem. This is part of The Rio Times’ daily coverage of Latin American markets and financial news.

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