MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Brazil' Petrobras agrees to explore for oil offshore Cuba

Brazil is scheduled to sign on Friday an agreement with Cuba for deep-water oil and gas exploration and production. The event is considered the highlight of the two day visit of President Lula da Silva to the island beginning late Thursday.

Cuban authorities said Lula da Silva would preside over a signing ceremony between Brazil's government managed oil and gas corporation Petrobras and Cuba Petroleo. The Cuban government newspaper reported that both sides would "sign a contract for the production of hydrocarbons," but there were no further details. During an interview at the United Nations on Wednesday, Cuban Foreign Minister Felipe Perez Roque anticipated Cuba "will sign in the presence of President Lula da Silva a very important agreement for oil exploration in deep water." Cuba relies on foreign partners to produce 60,000 barrels of oil a day, (mainly Canada) but earlier this month, Cuba Petroleo exploration manager Rafael Tenreyro Perez told reporters that offshore reserves have the potential to produce 20 billion barrels of oil, more than double the previous estimate. Lula da Silva arrives in Havana with agricultural experts from a small farmers association who will help Cuban officials begin large-scale soy farming operations on land once used for growing sugar. They said the aim is eventually to have more than 100,000 acres of soy planted on the island. Brazilian officials have hinted in recent months that they would like to see their country become nearly as important a trade partner for Cuba as Venezuela and its president, Hugo Chavez, who ships nearly 100,000 barrels of crude oil per day to the island at favorable prices. Perez Roque said such a goal "would be possible only if President Lula da Silva and the Brazilian government make a very strong effort." "But I can assure you that in the past [several] years, economic relations and political relations between Brazil and Cuba really have been increasing" he said. "Trade, investment is growing." Lula da Silva was scheduled to meet privately with President Raul Castro on Thursday evening. There was no official word on whether he would visit the ailing 82 year old ex leader. When Lula da Silva visited Cuba in January, the pair met behind closed doors, after which Cuban official media released images of the encounter that provided one of the few hints about Fidel Castro's health released this year. Lula da Silva's trip comes hours after his country announced it was shipping up to 45,000 tons of rice and 2,000 tons of powdered milk to help hurricane victims in Cuba, Haiti, Honduras and Jamaica. The Brazilian president arrived from El Salvador where he participated in the annual Ibero-American leaders' summit.