Shell and TotalEnergies Execute Gas Import Deal and Pre-Salt Asset Swap in Brazil

Shell Energy Brasil has secured authorization to import up to 2.5 million cubic meters per day of natural gas from Argentina through TotalEnergies’ subsidiary Total Austral. The interruptible supply will transit through Bolivia, with pricing set at $6.42 per million BTU at the border. Shell already maintains a presence in Argentine gas commercialization for the Chilean market, and this arrangement extends its regional gas trading footprint into Brazil. The company has filed the necessary import application with Argentine authorities as it moves to execute the supply arrangement.

In a parallel transaction, TotalEnergies agreed to exchange its 20 percent stake in the undeveloped Gato do Mato field for a 3 percent interest from Shell in the producing Lapa field, both located in the Santos Basin pre-salt. Shell reached final investment decision on Gato do Mato in March 2025, with the field holding estimated recoverable resources of 370 million barrels. First oil is not anticipated until 2029, leaving the bulk of capital expenditure ahead. The swap consolidates Shell’s operatorship and control over Gato do Mato development while maintaining exposure to Lapa production.

Lapa currently produces 53,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day, approximately 80 percent oil, with near-term growth expected from the South-West tieback project. TotalEnergies characterized the exchange as reinforcing its focus on low-cost, low-emission assets while strengthening its pre-salt operating position. The company retains development priorities in the second phases of the Atapu and Sepia fields in Brazil, alongside the GranMorgu project in Suriname.

The transactions follow a Rio de Janeiro court ruling that granted preliminary injunctions to Shell Brasil, Equinor, Petrogal, TotalEnergies, and Repsol Sinopec suspending a 12 percent export tax on crude oil. The tax was implemented in March through provisional measure 1340 as the government sought to offset domestic fuel price impacts from elevated international oil prices linked to conflict in Iran. Judge Humberto de Vasconcelos Sampaio of the first federal court in Rio de Janeiro determined the measure functioned primarily as a revenue collection instrument rather than legitimate export regulation. The government simultaneously imposed a 50 percent tax on diesel exports and provided subsidies to domestic fuel producers, estimating fiscal impacts at 30 billion reais from combined tax relief and subsidy measures.