Petrobras says other Santos wells similar to Tupi

MADRID, July 6 (Reuters) - Petrobras' most recent oil finds off the Brazilian coast are of the same order as the massive and newly discovered Tupi field, the chairman of Brazil's state oil company said in an interview published on Sunday.

"The conditions in the other wells are very similar to those at Tupi," Jose Sergio Gabrielli told Spain's El Pais newspaper.

Tupi has estimated recoverable reserves of 5 to 8 billion barrels.

"In all the wells we find clear indications of hydrocarbons. We cannot firm up volumes, but there is a lot of oil," he said.

Gabrielli said Petrobras and its partners would be able to say with greater certainty how much oil lay beneath the subsalt structures in the Santos basin next year. Pilot production at Tupi will begin at the end of 2010, he said in the interview. The company estimates production from Tupi will hit 500,000 barrels a day by 2020.

Petrobras produces 2.3 million barrels of oil a day, but thanks to the Santos find, which could turn out to be the world's biggest deep-water discoveries, that will rise to 4.1 million by 2015, Gabrielli said.

"In 2015 we will be one of the five biggest energy companies in the world," he said. "Without doubt, we will increase production and we will grow more after 2015".

Geologists say Brazil's total subsalt potential could be 70 billion barrels or more, but experts agree that production could be technologically challenging and costly.

Petrobras operates the project with partners Britain's BG Group (BG.L) and Spain's Repsol (REP.MC). ExxonMobil Corp (XOM.N), Hess Corp (HES.N), Portugal's Galp (GALP.LS), Petrogal, and Royal Dutch Shell (RDSa.L) are involved in separate subsalt oil finds. (Reporting by Ben Harding; Editing by Erica Billingham)