Brazilian oil major Petrobras has decided to file an appeal against environmental agency Ibama’s decision not allow the drilling of a wildcat well off the mouth of the Amazon river.

The state-controlled company said it is ready to meet additional requirements from Ibama but claims to have so far fulfilled all “technical needs” for the project to be approved.

Petrobras exploration and production director Joelson Mendes told Upstream two weeks ago that a negative decision would compel the operator to mobilise the semi-submersible rig that it has chartered for the operation to a different basin and he said the company had waited “long enough”.

The company later stated that it would take the rig to the Campos basin but then changed tack when it received a request from Brazil’s Mines & Energy Ministry to keep the rig on stand-by for operations in the environmentally sensitive Foz de Amazonas basin.

Ibama’s decision was explained by “technical inconsistencies” in the Petrobras environmental impact assessment, relating to issues ranging from spill response to consultation of coastal indigenous communities.

The decision is causing a growing split within the coalition government led by President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva’s camp between those who want to prioritize protecting the environment — represented by key ally and current Environment & Climate Change Minister Marina Silva — and those who want to use Petrobras to drive economic development in Brazil’s northern region.

Misunderstanding

Lula has expressed muted support for the wildcatting operation, saying he found it “difficult” to believe that offshore oil exploration in the would cause environment damage, and implying that there was a misunderstanding that a distant offshore operation posed some threat to the rainforest.

Ibama’s objections are focused more on spill and spill response simulations and the distances that would be involved given the powerful currents in a region that borders with French Guiana.

Petrobras’ decision to appeal Ibama’s ban follows a meeting on Tuesday between the company’s chief executive Jean Paul Prates, Mines & Energy Minister Alexandre Silveira, Silva and the environmental agency’s head Rodrigo Agostinho.

In a statement released on Tuesday, Petrobras described the emergency response structure proposed by the company as the largest in the country.

“Even so, Petrobras is ready to meet additional demands that may remain,” it added.

Petrobras also pointed out that Block FZA-M-59, was acquired in a licensing round in 2013 after selection of the area in consultation with Ibama and argued that this “leads to the conclusion that the challenges indicated were all technically surmountable”.

Petrobas has eight commitment wells to drill under the terms of that concession.

The operator also pledged to establish a new spill response base at Oiapoque, in the state of Amapa, to address the objection of distances put by Ibama in refusing permits even for the pre-operational test on the proposed drilling location.