Petrobras’ first quarter performance remained unaffected by Covid-19

According to Petrobras, the negative effects of the global recession caused by the coronavirus pandemic did not substantially impact the company’s production and sales performance in the first quarter of 2020.  During this period, company reports indicate that the average production of oil, LNG and natural gas was 2,909 Mboed, implying a commercial production of 2,606 Mboed and oil production of 2,320 Mbpd. These volumes, compared to the same period in 2019, represent growth of 14.6% in total production, 13.3% in commercial production and 17.7% in oil production, due to the ramp-up of platforms that went into production in 2018 and 2019 (P-74, P-75, P-76 and P-77 in the Búzios field, P-67 and P-69 in the Lula field and P-68 in the Berbigão and Sururu fields).

To deal with the drastic contraction in global demand for oil – estimated at 25-30 MMbpd in the second quarter of 2020 – and fuels the company initially decided to reduce oil production in April to 2.07 MMbpd and the utilization factor of its refineries from 79% to 60% at the same time as it strengthened the logistical capacity to export crude oil, diesel and fuel oil.

According to the company, these measures have contributed to the generation of cash and a decline in inventories, allowing for the maintenance of reasonable clearance in storage capacity, thus avoiding the adoption of measures such as the chartering of ships to store liquids. In addition, with demand for products being better than expected, Petrobras opted for a gradual return to an average oil production level of 2.26 MMbpd in April accompanied by an increase in the capacity utilization factor for refining.

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