27-03-07 Brazil plans to hold a new annual auction of oil exploration and production licenses in August, without the restrictions that led to the cancellation of a previous round last November, a government official said.
In November, Brazil abandoned its incomplete eighth annual auction after a judge's injunction against a rule that limited the number of blocks one company could buy in a determined sector. The cancellation unnerved foreign oil companies.

"There will be no restriction at the ninth. The legal opinion was that it should not exist... we don't want the possibility of any problems," Nelson Narciso, director with oil sector regulator ANP, told.
The rule on buying limits imposed by the ANP last year had hurt the interests of Brazil's state oil company Petrobras -- the traditional top buyer in these auctions. Foreign oil companies have expressed concern about regulatory stability after cancellation of the auction but few seemed to be bothered with whether the limits continue or not.

Narciso said areas from the eighth auction would not be re-offered for now. The new round will offer areas likely to contain natural gas and light oil. Asked whether uncertainty created last year could affect the new auction, Narciso said he did not think so:
"There is a search for oil all over the world. Brazil has all the characteristics an investor needs: economic, political and regulatory stability as well as qualified workforce. Brazil remains fairly attractive," he said.