São Paulo – The vice-president of Brazil, Geraldo Alckmin, said this Monday (17) a working group between the federal government and the national business sector will be established to seek ways to improve the natural gas supply in the country. According to him, the suggestion for creating the group came from the president of the Federation of Industries of the State of São Paulo (FIESP), Josué Gomes.
“Highlighting his good suggestion that we create a working group formed by the ministries of Mining and Energy, Civil House, Industry and Commerce, Finance, the FIESP, Petrobras and independent [gas] producers,” he said at a press conference at an event held at FIESP.
The vice president highlighted gas is essential for several Brazilian industrial sectors. “So we can work on improving the supply, with more natural gas, which is a fundamental input for industries – chemicals, fertilizers, ceramics, and even commerce,” he listed.
Natural gas prices
Brazilian oil company Petrobras announced, also this Monday, an average reduction of 8.1% in the price of natural gas compared to this year’s first quarter. The new pricing will come into effect from May 1, according to a release by the state-owned company. With the readjustment, gas sold by Petrobras to distributors accumulates a reduction of 19% this year, said Petrobras.
The company stressed, however, the final price of natural gas to the consumer is not only determined by the company’s selling price but also by the supply of each distributor, its margins, and taxes. The natural gas pricing update does not affect liquified petrol gas (LPG or cooking gas) in cylinders or bulk.
Translated by Elúsio Brasileiro