Bharat Petroleum Corporation's (BPCL) wholly-owned subsidiary -- Bharat PetroResources (BPRL) has received approval from Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) for additional USD 1.6 billion investment for the development of the BM-SEAL-11 Concession Project in Brazil. The block is to start production from 2026-27. BPRL has a 40 per cent stake in the block. Brazil's national oil company Petrobras is the operator with 60 per cent interest. The CCEA nod will help to access equity oil to strengthen India's energy security and diversify the country's crude oil supply.
Earlier, BPCL had partnered with Videocon for taking the stake in the block in 2008. IBV Brasil SA, a 50-50 joint venture between Videocon and BPRL Ventures NV, a unit of BPRL (the upstream arm of BPCL), held 40 per cent. But after the bankruptcy of Videocon, BPRL now owns the entire 40 per cent stake.
BPCL is into exploration, production and retailing of petroleum and petrol related products. The retail business unit of BPCL is into marketing of petrol, diesel and kerosene.
