OREANDA-NEWS. Brazil's state-controlled Petrobras produced a record 2.69mn b/d of oil equivalent (boe/d) in August, a 3.1pc increase over July and almost 1pc higher than the previous 2.67mn boe/d record set in December 2014, the company said.

Domestic oil production averaged 2.21mn b/d in August, almost on par with the previous record set in December 2014 and up by 3pc compared with July.

The end of scheduled maintenance at offshore platforms contributed to the increase, and helped reverse a downward trend that had persisted since the start of the year.

A ramp-up in production at the floating, production, storage and offloading (FPSO) unit Cidade de Itaguai, which started output in the Lula subsalt field at the end of July, also helped flow rates.

Output from the 150,000 b/d unit helped pushed Petrobras-operated subsalt oil production to a record 859,000 b/d, a 7.6pc increase over the 798,000 b/d produced in July and up 61pc year-on-year.

Petrobras did not disclose the amount of associated natural gas produced from subsalt fields in the Campos and Santos basins.

Domestic gas output reached a record 77.2mn m?/d (2.72bn ft?/d), a 3.6pc increase over the previous month and an 8.4pc year-on-year increase.

The company?s total production, including overseas output, reached a record 2.88mn boe/d, a 3.1pc increase over July and up around 1pc over the December 2014 record.

Oil and gas production from foreign fields averaged 192,000 boe/d, a 3.8pc increase over July.

Overseas oil production climbed by 5.2pc over July to 101,000 b/d following the resumption of operations at the Campo de Saint Malo platform in the US Gulf of Mexico. Gas production averaged 15.4mn m?/d day, a 1.9pc increase over July.

Petrobras says domestic oil output should grow to 2.121mn b/d this year, a 4.5pc increase, plus or minus 1pc, over 2014.