Petrobras hereby announces the sale, for $2.5 billion, of 66 percent of the stake in exploratory block BM-S-8, where the area of Caracara is located in the pre-salt Santos Basin, to the Norwegian state-owned oil company Statoil. Our Finance and Investor Relations Officer, Ivan Monteiro, and Exploration and Production Officer, Solange Guedes, explained that the operation is based on our portfolio management strategy, which aims to prioritize assets that allow us to maintain equipment standardization to reduce investment costs while seeking assets that generate revenue in the short term in order to improve the profile of our debt. They also stressed the importance of the operation to achieve the partnership and divestment goal set at $15.1 billion for the 2015-2016 period.

The sale announced is the largest merger and acquisition carried out between companies operating out of the oil and gas exploration segment in history, and is the second largest deal of this type in Brazil this year.

The transaction will have no impact on our reserves and production in the short term. “There are no reserves associated with these assets, and production was only expected to begin there in the middle of the next decade,” said the officer at the press conference held in São Paulo, which she granted with Ivan Monteiro.

Monteiro reaffirmed that we will maintain the partnership and divestment goal for the year, and will work "tirelessly" to achieve it. At the same event, Solange Guedes explained that the block that was sold is still in its exploration phase (prior to oil extraction) and required investments that, for our having a varied portfolio, we can allocate to fields that are producing or will produce in a shorter period of time.

The director also emphasized the importance of consolidating the partnership with the Norwegian company. She stressed the profile and history similarities there are between the two companies, both of which with origins in the state and with strong commitments to their countries of origin: "Statoil means a lot to us. We are longtime technology partners, and for quite some time we have had the ambition to bring it to this strategic partnership.”

BM-S-8 is currently operated by Petrobras (66%), Petrogal (14%), Queiroz Galvão Exploração e Produção S.A. (10%), and Barra Energia of Brazil Petróleo e Gás Ltda. (10%). Our partners will be able to exercise preemptive rights in the operation, which means they can decide to buy our share for at least the same amount offered by Statoil.

In addition to the $2.5 billion announced, approximately R$1.9 billion from the sale of 49% of Gaspetro to the Japanese outfit Mitsui, in December 2015, and approximately $900 million for the sale of the control over Petrobras Argentina to Pampa have already entered Petrobras’ cash. Another $464 million are expected from the sale of Petrobras Chile to the Southern Cross Group, as announced this week.

About Petrobras

We have upwards of 100 production platforms, 16 refineries, 30,000 kilometers of pipelines and more than 6,000 service stations. Our proved reserves are around 14 billion barrels of oil, a figure expected to double in the next few years. With the discovery of oil and gas in the pre-salt region, Brazil may become the world's fourth biggest oil producer in 2030.

We have built a track record of overcoming challenges since 1953, when the company was created. The main one was developing technology to explore and produce oil in deep and ultra-deep waters, where upwards of 90% of our reserves are nestled. With innovation and daringness, we are now the Brazilian company that makes the applies for the most patents in Brazil and abroad.

About Statoil

Statoil ASA (OSE: STL, NYSE: STO) is an international energy company with operations in 36 countries. Building on 40 years of experience from oil and gas production on the Norwegian continental shelf, we are committed to accommodating the world's energy needs in a responsible manner, applying technology and creating innovative business solutions. We are headquartered in Stavanger, Norway, with approximately 23,000 employees worldwide, and are listed on the Oslo and New York stock exchanges.