Rio de Janeiro – The 5% reduction in Petrobras revenues in 2011, as against the previous year, was caused by the great number of unprogrammed stops in production units and by exchange losses, among others. The state-owned company’s profit dropped from R$ 35.2 billion (US$ 20.4 billion at current exchange rates) in 2010 to R$ 33.3 billion (US$ 19.3 billion) last year.
Another reason for the reduction in the company’s profits is the great difference between the price of the barrel of oil on the international market and the price charged by Petrobras. “This lower profit is closely related to conjectural elements regarding prices and exchange rates and also some uncontrolled impacts we had in production, including unprogrammed stops,” said company president José Sergio Gabrielli, in a press conference in the city of Rio de Janeiro.
According to the financial director at Petrobras, Almir Barbassa, unprogrammed stops were due to an agreement signed with the National Petroleum Agency in the second half of 2010, to reduce risks at platforms. The unprogrammed stops alone reduced production by an average of 40,000 barrels of oil a day. “It was a difficult year, when considering the stops. This increased costs and reduced revenues,” said Barbassa.
According to the Export and Production director, Guilherme Estrella, programmed stops are scheduled 18 months in advance and involve great planning. When compared with these, non-programmed stops tend to be “longer and more expensive”.
Another result identified in the 2011 Petrobras budget, presented on Thursday (9), is a reduction in company investment. In 2011, the state-owned company invested R$ 72.5 billion, almost R$ 4 billion less than in the previous year. According to Gabrielli, the reduction is due to a limitation in the supply chain, which, due to the international financial crisis and to the excess demand, was not capable of delivering equipment in time.
*Translated by Mark Ament
