Petrobras Looks For Big Output Boost

Petrobras

, Brazil's state-run oil giant, said today it's looking to boost oil and natural gas production by 23% by the end of next year as it taps into Brazil's vast pre-salt fields. The company is planning to increase production to over 6 million barrels per day by 2020 as it spends $224.7 billion over the next five years, by far the largest exploration budget of any of the world's oil majors. Petrobras also wants to be the world's largest publicly traded oil company by 2020, an ambitious goal considering its current market cap trails Exxon Mobil's

by about $200 billion. Through the end of 2011, Petrobras will bring 16 new wells on-stream with the potential to produce 175,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day, Reuters reported, citing the company. The company has produced almost 2.6 million barrels per day this year through the first three quarters of 2011. Petrobras could add up to 600,000 barrels per day in new capacity next year. Petrobras ADRs are up almost 2% today.