Oil scenery : its evolution, leading producers and technologies

Abstract

Introduciton: The Petroleum sector is one of the largest and most comprehensive in the world market. And it is growing every year with new technologies and new innovation perspectives. Objectives: This research involves the following objectives: to present a brief history of the origin of oil and its development over the years; to present an analysis of the oil sector, indicating the main countries which own the largest reserves and the largest oil companies in the world; and a patent analysis showing the annual number of patent documents in the respective area in a given period, the areas of technological focus and the companies that place more patent documents in this sector in Brazil. Methodology: The research method consisted in the selection of articles which made it possible to put the history of oil into context and also in the selection of statistical data that would indicate it's evolution through charts and graphs that show the production and development over the years. It was deemed necessary and important to analyze the Derwent Innovation Index database, as it allowed the utilization of patent documents as a source of information, inasmuch as they register technological breakthroughs. Results: With the establishment of a search strategy in the 1994- 2013 period it was possible to highlight Procter & Gamble, an American company, as the company that places more patent documents within this area in Brazil. Conclusion: As for the recent discoveries of oil reserves in Brazil and in ther countries the trend is that the area be strengthened by implementing their technologies and increasing their productive reserves making them stand out more and more worldwide.