RIO DE JANEIRO, Sept. 6 - The imminent production from Brazil's new-found off-shore oil field will not have a negative impact on the country's booming ethanol industry, a top energy expert assured on Friday.
Mauricio Tomalsquim, president of the Brazilian Power Research Company (EPE), said that the huge pre-salt layer oil reserves will not alter Brazil's energy sector, which will continue to depend heavily on renewable sources.
He explained that the new reserves will lead to an increase in the export of oil byproducts, thus not affecting the bio fuel sector in the country.
Brazil boasts one of the highest rates of ethanol-fuelled motor vehicles in the world -- 85 percent to 90 percent of the cars manufactured in the country are flexibly fuelled.
The EPE chief added that ethanol-fuelled cars would remain competitive compared to oil-fuelled ones, as the prices of petro-chemical products in Brazil tend to follow the moves on the international market.
Tomalsquim did not see either an increase of use of oil in the electricity generation section in the country since oil-fuelled thermal power plants are not only less competitive but also more polluting.
The EPE president, however, highlighted the importance of the discovery of the pre-salt layer oil field now known as the Tupi Oil Field by saying that it would help promote Brazil's development as well as lifting the country's oil company Petrobras to new technological levels.
Until now Brazil's oil reserves have all been found in post-salt layer geological formations which are shallower than the pre-salt layer ones.
Petrobras, already holding a 30-percent stake in the Tupi oil reserve, estimates that the Tupi Oil Field can turn out to be twice the size of Brazil's existing largest oil field at Roncador.
The state-controlled oil and gas company believes that the Tupi accumulation contains at least 5 billion to 8 billion barrels of recoverable oil.
Mauricio Tomalsquim, president of the Brazilian Power Research Company (EPE), said that the huge pre-salt layer oil reserves will not alter Brazil's energy sector, which will continue to depend heavily on renewable sources.
He explained that the new reserves will lead to an increase in the export of oil byproducts, thus not affecting the bio fuel sector in the country.
Brazil boasts one of the highest rates of ethanol-fuelled motor vehicles in the world -- 85 percent to 90 percent of the cars manufactured in the country are flexibly fuelled.
The EPE chief added that ethanol-fuelled cars would remain competitive compared to oil-fuelled ones, as the prices of petro-chemical products in Brazil tend to follow the moves on the international market.
Tomalsquim did not see either an increase of use of oil in the electricity generation section in the country since oil-fuelled thermal power plants are not only less competitive but also more polluting.
The EPE president, however, highlighted the importance of the discovery of the pre-salt layer oil field now known as the Tupi Oil Field by saying that it would help promote Brazil's development as well as lifting the country's oil company Petrobras to new technological levels.
Until now Brazil's oil reserves have all been found in post-salt layer geological formations which are shallower than the pre-salt layer ones.
Petrobras, already holding a 30-percent stake in the Tupi oil reserve, estimates that the Tupi Oil Field can turn out to be twice the size of Brazil's existing largest oil field at Roncador.
The state-controlled oil and gas company believes that the Tupi accumulation contains at least 5 billion to 8 billion barrels of recoverable oil.
