Brazil's government on Monday approved a license request by state-run oil giant Petrobras to drill for oil near the mouth of the Amazon River.

The move has triggered sharp criticism by environmental activists ahead of the COP30 UN climate talks in Brazil next month.

The Equatorial Margin deposit off Brazil's coast is believed to be rich in oil and gas.

The company was granted the license to drill in the area after a five-year battle. The country's environmental agency IBAMA said the approval came after a "rigorous environmental licensing process."

IBAMA had initially refused a similar Petrobras application in May 2023 citing inadequate plans to protect wildlife in case of an oil spill.

Petrobras said the drilling could start immediately and would take up to five months.

Left-wing president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has backed the plans, saying the oil revenue would help fund Brazil's climate transition. Brazil's Energy Minister Alexandre Silveira said the decision would defend "the future of our energy sovereignty."

What have environmentalists said?

Critics, however, have condemned the government's decision.

A network of environmental groups in Brazil, Observatorio do Clima ("Climate Observatory"), said the oil drilling license was a "sabotage" to the upcoming COP30 climate summit, which will take place in the Amazon city of Belem between November 10 and 21.

Suely Araujo, a coordinator at the Climate Observatory, pointed out that the goal of COP30 is the "the gradual elimination of fossil fuels."

Araujo also accused the government of acting "against humanity by stimulating more expansion" of fossil fuels and "betting on more global warming."

Activists have also warned of the impact of drilling off the coast of the world's largest tropical rainforest, which is home to several Indigenous communities.

The company has rejected the claims, saying its models show that a potential oil spill "would not be likely to reach the coast" and that there would be "no direct impact" on Indigenous communities.

Lula, who will turn 80 on October 27, had supported the use of biofuels during his first two terms, between 2003 and 2010.

However, that stance has shifted since offshore oil discoveries have helped the state of Rio de Janeiro fund a range of public causes, from health to education.

Edited by: Karl Sexton