China, Brazil can cooperate extensively in energy

RIO DE JANEIRO -- China has other options to invest in Brazil's energy market even if the recent fall in oil prices makes pre-salt oil exploration in the country unviable, Brazilian expert Severino Cabral said.

Cabral, head of the Brazilian Institute of China and Asia Pacific Studies, told Xinhua that it remains to be seen whether oil prices will stabilize between $60 to $70 a barrel, which makes the exploration of both pre-salt and shale oil viable.

"It is not only pre-salt exploration that is at risk," he said.

However, Cabral stressed that a bigger scenario must be taken into consideration when it comes to the energy market -- if oil prices fall, renewable energy sources will seem expensive; if oil prices increase, those sources become more attractive.

"Renewable sources will only be taken into consideration when oil and other fossil fuels get too expensive," he stressed, adding that "if oil prices remain between $60 to $70, it is inevitable that countries will invest in it."

Brazil produces both pre-salt oil and regular oil. Currently prices are still convenient for pre-salt oil exploration, and the country will still have the chance to invest in less expensive regular oil production if prices fall to levels which make the pre-salt exploration unviable.

Besides, the country can also explore other energy sources, especially the renewable ones such as ethanol fuel, solar power and wind power. It is also worth noting that Brazil has a high potential in hydroelectric power which supplies most of the country's energy.

Cabral said Brazil's energy versatility is an advantage for China, a great consumer in the energy market which can invest in many power sources in Brazil if oil prices make pre-salt investments less profitable.

He observed that China is consuming more energy and "Brazil is a natural and strategic partner of China as it has a huge stock of natural resources."

Cabral believes that, if oil prices fall too much, which he thinks unlikely, and producers place their bets on cheap oil, investments in the more expensive pre-salt oil will get harder.

However, he said there is a simple solution for Brazil.

"We can place our bets on ethanol and biofuel resources and produce them in large scale for export," Cabral said.

He added that "Brazil is rich in natural resources, which will only become valuable in the international market through investments."

Cabral believes oil prices will stabilize between $50 and $70 a barrel, which makes the exploration of pre-salt exploration and shale oil in the?US viable. But Brazil can seek alternatives if prices continue to fall, and China can be a great partner in that aspect.

Other opportunities in the oil field for Chinese companies are also open as Brazil's state-controlled oil giant Petrobras is seeking partners abroad, he said.

Chinese companies can either sign contracts with Petrobras directly or join local companies in partnership, a move that benefits both sides, Cabral noted.

Petrobras, mired in a scandal since investigators revealed late last year that construction and supply firms had been paying high-level executives kickbacks in exchange for major contracts, has suspended many of its local suppliers.

Regardless of the sector of the industrial field China chooses to invest in Brazil, the two countries can develop together, Cabral added.

"China will remain the locomotive of global growth and Brazil must become part of this development," he said, adding that "it is a challenge to adjust the country's finances for an accelerated growth."

Cabral said China is interested in boosting partnership with Brazil, which is mutually beneficial. Brazil still lacks some courage to find out in which areas the trade and relations can be tightened but that can be improved.

"We are in a period with opportunities and we have four or five decisive years ahead to take advantage of the ones open to Brazil, " the expert said.

"If Brazil can seize them, it will benefit China as well," he suggested.