Rio de Janeiro – Transpetro is going to float a new tender for the building of eight tanker vessels for transporting petroleum derivatives. The company, which is Petrobras’ arm in the transport sector, announced last Thursday (6th) that it has invited 16 companies, five domestic and 11 international, for the tender.
The invitations were sent on December 23rd and the bids should be submitted by February 23rd. The bids will undergo technical and commercial analysis and the tender should be completed by the end of the first half this year.
The tender completes the process of commissioning of 49 vessels for the first two phases of the Transpetro Fleet Modernization and Expansion Program (Promef, in the Portuguese acronym). In 2010, three of the program’s vessels were inaugurated, namely the Suezmax João Cândido, built by the Atlântico Sul shipyard (state of Pernambuco); and Celso Furtado and Sérgio Buarque de Holanda, both built by the Mauá shipyard (state of Rio de Janeiro).
In addition to promoting a resurgence of the Brazilian naval industry, the Promef’s orders have led Brazil to have the world’s fourth largest firm order backlog for oil tankers.
One of the main structuring works in the federal government’s Growth Acceleration Program (PAC), Transpetro’s naval construction program has created more than 15,000 direct jobs. Over the course of the Promef, the figure should reach 40,000 direct jobs and 160,000 indirect ones. The 41 vessels that have already been commissioned will lead to 9.6 billion Brazilian reals (US$ 5.7 billion) in investment.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
