São Paulo – The Brazilian state-owned oil company, Petrobras, announced this Friday (13th) that it posted a net profit of nearly 11 billion Brazilian reals (US$ 6.7 billion) in the first quarter, representing an increase of 42% over the same period of last year and of 4% over the last three months of 2010. The figure is a record, according to the company.
According to a statement from the company, the result was influenced by a 4% increase in domestic oil and gas production, a 6% increase in sales of derivatives, and a 13% increment in sales of natural gas, combined with the higher prices of the product on the domestic and foreign markets.
As a result of the increase in the Brent oil price from US$ 76 in the first quarter of 2010 to nearly US$ 105 in the same period this year, Petrobras’ revenues from foreign sales grew by nearly 2 billion reals (US$ 1.2 billion).
The company’s total daily production of oil and gas, in Brazil and abroad, grew by 3% in the first three months of 2011, compared with the first quarter of last year, and surpassed the average of 2.6 million barrels of oil equivalent.
The company also informed that its investment portfolio reached nearly 16 billion reals (US$ 9.8 billion) in the first quarter, of which 83% were allocated to exploration, production and refining activities.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
