Petrobras maintained a solid third-quarter performance with a total of 3.65 million oil-equivalent barrels (MMboe) produced. A whopping 73% of production came from Brazil’s massive pre-salt basin.
The state-owned entity on Friday said that the 1.94 MMboe represented a 2.6% increase from Q2 and is mainly due to the ramp-up of its floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel – Guanabara.
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Petrobras also reported a 47.6% increase in net profit, a direct result of higher Brent prices.
Its net profit stood at US$8.8 billion compared with US$5.9 billion in the same period a year ago. Net revenue for the quarter was US$32.41 billion, an increase from US$23.25 billion reported in Q3 2021.
“From the financial point of view, we brought our cash position to a level more compatible with the financial needs of the company, considering that besides cash balances of US$6.8 billion, we have access to revolving credit facilities, resulting in additional liquidity to the company should stress scenarios eventually materialise,” Petrobras’ Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Rodrigo Araujo Alves commented.
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Those profits were accrued with Brazil’s former President, Jair Bolsonaro, at the helm. But now, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is taking the reins and Petrobras is expected to undergo a major shakeup. Whether this will be for the better, is yet to be determined.
Industry analysts have made assumptions about how different things will go with Lula in charge.
Arthur Deakin, Director for Americas Market Intelligence (AMI) Energy Practice, has signaled that Lula’s expected reforms could put Petrobras in a less profitable position.
