British oil and gas firms have struck deals worth nearly £470million in Brazil since March, the UK Government has revealed.
Ken Clarke will lead a trade mission to the emerging South American power this week in his role as the prime minister’s trade envoy.
Ahead of his visit revealed that the Government has helped British companies to win £468.65million worth of oil and gas contracts in the financial year so far, compared with £467.94 million in the whole of 2012-13.
The Cabinet minister also hailed Shell’s successful bid as part of a multinational consortium to extract the estimated eight to 12 billion barrels of recoverable oil in the Libra oil field off the Brazilian coast.
“The Shell success is excellent news for the British export effort,” Mr Clarke said yesterday.
“Not only are British oil majors at the heart of Brazilian oil exploration, they are also potentially opening up very considerable further opportunities for the British-based supply chain.
“Not enough of us realise that it is UK firms which are leading the world in the mind-bogglingly complex technology which is required to access oil at incredible depths and incredible pressures. These are companies operating at the very edge of the possible – and they are British born and bred.
“For all their technical know-how, they do need the clout and advocacy of the British government and the big oil majors if they are to access some of these big oil fields. Since my last trip to Brazil in May this year we have already helped generate £468.65million of contracts, more than was achieved in the whole of last year, and Shell’s success spells only further good news for the future.”
UK goods exports to Brazil were up 9.5% in the first six months of 2013, compared with the same period last year.
The success showed that Britain must remain an outward-looking nation that should forge closer one-to-one relationships with countries like Brazil, Mr Clarke said.
He added: “There has never been a more important time for the British to look outward and not inward.
“Trade has provided the bedrock of our island’s success for centuries. This is a proud tradition which this government is investing huge resource in boosting.”