Since 2013, we have adopted circular economy practices in our activities to prevent the generation of solid waste, with emphasis on the reuse of oily sludge in the production of shale oil and green petroleum coke. These practices made it possible to reduce the generation of hazardous waste by more than half, from 245,000 tons to 79,600 tons in ten years, minimizing any negative impacts on the environment and people.

For the development of new projects, we use the Front-End Loading (FEL) methodology for planning and approval of each phase of the project based on technical, economic, and environmental feasibility, in which technical criteria related to minimizing the generation and optimization of the destination of waste.

Routinely, several studies are carried out as part of the environmental licensing process in order to identify and assess the socio-environmental impacts throughout the development's life cycle, thus mitigating impacts related to solid waste management. Preventive, mitigating, and compensatory measures are defined in the installation, operation, and decommissioning phases of the projects.

We invested around BRL14 million in research and development projects at Cenpes in technologies related to waste reduction and reuse. 

Waste governance permeates all levels of the company, with a Thematic Waste Forum, made up of company experts, which reports to the Environment Commission. 

In 2023, the generation of hazardous and nonhazardous solid waste in our processes was 79.6 thousand and 143.9 thousand tons, respectively, totaling 223.5 thousand tons of waste. The generation of waste from processes in 2023 was the best performance in the last four years, the result of the sum of the circular economy actions implemented and the occasional reduction in non-continuous cleaning and maintenance activities.

In order to achieve our new ESG waste commitment, we are planning new circularity actions, operational optimizations, sustainable contracts, and workforce training and awareness, to reach 2030 generating a maximum of 195 thousand tons of process waste.

In 2023 we disposed 77.1 thousand hazardous and 158.5 thousand non-hazardous tons of waste from our processes. The proper management of our solid waste allowed 91% of the hazardous waste mass generated in the processes to be sent to RRR routes. The total waste from processes destined for non-RRR routes was 6.7 thousand tons, therefore, lower than the established limit for the year (15.9 thousand tons).

Also in 2023, it was possible to achieve that 69% of the mass of non-hazardous solid waste from the process was destined for RRR routes. The disposal of nonhazardous waste from processes for non-RRR routes was 49.1 thousand tons, therefore, lower than the established limit for the year (55.6 thousand tons).

In total, 76% of the mass of hazardous and nonhazardous solid waste from the process was destined for RRR routes, which reiterates our efforts to adopt circular economy practices and puts us on track for our new ESG commitment to dispose of 80% of waste process solids for RRR routes by 2030.

In 2023, we generated 2.,0 thousand tons and disposed of 1.5 thousand tons of cuttings and water-based fluids from exploration and production processes in land operations or landed from offshore operations2 . We also generated and disposed of 0.1 thousand tons of cuttings and non-aqueous based fluids. Alternatives for environmentally appropriate treatment or final disposal of these materials were adopted.

In 2023, 39.6 thousand tons were generated, and 38.3 thousand tons of oily sludge were destined for disposal. For this portion that is not reused as raw material for oilproducts, environmentally appropriate treatment or final disposal alternatives are adopted.

The E&P active portfolio management process must take into account issues related to the decommissioning of assets, which is a legal requirement to be carried out when the life cycle of the production system ends, or within the scope of area revitalization projects, through of replacing old systems with new ones, which is, therefore, a natural process within the production cycle of the oil and gas industry, which will be increasingly common in Brazil, given the proximity of the end of the productive life of many maritime production systems.

In compliance with resolution n. 817/2020 of the ANP, the Maritime Installation Decommissioning Programs (PDI) are evaluated and approved by the ANP, Ibama and the Navy considering the institutional responsibilities of each body. In summary, Ibama analyzes the solutions presented from an environmental point of view; the ANP from a technical perspective, verifying the adequacy of proposals to best industry practices; and the Navy observes whether issues affecting navigation safety and other uses of the sea are guaranteed.

We seek to convert the decommissioning of our assets into a value driver in sustainability in our production cycle, in line with our commitments to the country's economic development, sustainable innovation and improving the quality of life of society as a whole, respecting human rights and the environment and contributing to the achievement of the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)