State-owned company cuts refinery price by R$ 0.16 per liter in light of falling global oil costs.

Following the surprise announcement by OPEC+ at the weekend that it would increase oil production from June, the Brazilian state oil company Petrobras $PETR3 (+0.79%)
$PETR4 (-0.41%) acted quickly and lowered domestic diesel prices. On Monday (5th), the company announced a 4.66% cut in the price of diesel, reducing the price per liter by R$0.16 from R$3.43 to R$3.27. The cartel's move put downward pressure on global oil prices and gave Petrobras room to adjust domestic prices.

This is the third reduction in the price of diesel by Petrobras since the beginning of April, bringing the cumulative reduction to 12.6%. The first adjustment took place on April 1 with a decrease of 4.57%, followed by a reduction of 3.38% on April 17. Petrol prices, on the other hand, have remained unchanged since July 2024. The new diesel price comes into force on Tuesday (6th).

Despite the recent price cuts, market research companies estimate that Petrobras' diesel price is still above international parity prices. According to StoneX, the price of Petrobras diesel is currently R$0.34 per liter above the world market price, i.e. 10.5% above parity. There is a similar discrepancy of R$ 0.30 per liter for gasoline.

The Brazilian Association of Fuel Importers (Abicom) estimates the Petrobras diesel price at 5% above parity, or R$ 0.17 per liter, and the gasoline price at 8% above parity (R$ 0.24). The Brazilian Center for Infrastructure Studies (CBIE) estimates the premium for diesel at 3.7 % (R$ 0.12 per liter), while gasoline is trading 2.1 % below the international level.

Brent crude for July delivery closed at $60.23 on Monday, down 1.72%, while August contracts fell 1.04% to $59.89. Market forecasts for Brent are averaging between $65 and $70 per barrel this year. Given the less optimistic outlook, Petrobras ordinary shares fell 2.81% to R$31.77 on the B3 exchange. The preference shares ended the trading session down 3.73% at R$ 29.66, their lowest closing price since 2025.

"Taking into account the mandatory blend of 86% regular diesel (Diesel A) and 14% biodiesel for the production of retail diesel (Diesel B), Petrobras' share of the consumer price at the pump will now be R$2.81 per liter, a reduction of R$0.14 per liter," the company said in a statement.

Petrobras' move comes in the wake of OPEC+'s decision, announced on Saturday (3), to increase production by 411,000 barrels per day from next month. Although anticipated for some time, the increase was implemented earlier than expected. The cartel is due to meet again on June 1, when members are expected to set production targets for July.

In a report, Goldman Sachs assumes that OPEC+ will decide on a further production increase at this meeting. The bank cited better-than-expected economic data suggesting that a potential drop in demand may not be significant enough to justify a supply cut by the cartel.

Goldman Sachs also noted that Petrobras' latest move is another step towards aligning domestic fuel prices with international benchmarks. However, with prices still above parity, the bank sees scope for further downward adjustments.

According to circles close to Petrobras, the price reductions for diesel fuel have not been fully felt by consumers at the pump. In April, the company's two price cuts totaled R$0.29 per liter, but data from the National Petroleum Agency (ANP) shows that average pump prices fell by only R$0.13. With Monday's cut, wholesale diesel prices have fallen by R$0.45 per liter since April, which analysts estimate could mean a drop of R$0.39 per liter for consumers.

The Fecombustíveis association, which represents fuel distributors, emphasized that pricing is deregulated throughout the supply chain in Brazil. The association explained that neither it nor its 34 affiliated unions conduct price surveys or monitor the market: "Distributors are completely dependent on the pricing decisions of upstream companies and must also evaluate their own administrative costs according to their business structure."

Earlier this month, Petrobras increased kerosene prices for traders by 0.31%. The company usually adjusts kerosene prices on the first day of each month in accordance with contractual provisions.

The second module of the natural gas processing plant (UPGN) in the greater Rio de Janeiro area, which is operated by the Brazilian energy giant Petrobras $PETR3 (+0.79%)
$PETR4 (-0.41%) has commenced commercial operation.

Petrobras has been operating the UPGN, which is part of the Boaventura Energy Complex (BEC) in Itaboraí, in the Rio de Janeiro metropolitan region, commercially since November 2024.

On September 11, 2024, Petrobras announced that procedures had been initiated for the commissioning of what it claims to be Brazil's largest natural gas processing plant. The National Agency for Petroleum, Natural Gas and Biofuels (ANP) had granted approval for the industrial operation of the plant two days earlier.

The plant is part of the Route 3 Integrated Project (PIR3), which will enable the flow of up to 18 million cubic meters (cbm)/day and the processing of up to 21 million cbm/day of natural gas from pre-salt fields in the Santos Basin via the Route 3 gas pipeline through UPGN. The aim is to expand the supply of natural gas to the domestic market and reduce dependence on imports.

The project is part of the integrated gas flow system of the Santos Basin, which receives gas from fields such as Tupi, Búzios and Sapinhoá, among others. Regardless of the connection point, the gas from the production fields can be transported to different processing units, which means that the natural gas produced at UPGN is part of the company's overall supply.

The PIR3 project is described as strategic for Petrobras, as it is expected to increase the supply of natural gas to the Brazilian market and generate profits for the company. The gas, described as abundant, produces three products for the market after processing: natural gas (NG), liquefied petroleum gas (LPG or cooking gas) and C5+ (a raw material for the petrochemical industry and fuel production).

In addition to the natural gas pipeline and the UPGN, the Brazilian company says it is working on two gas-fired thermoelectric plants for the auctions planned by the electricity sector, as well as other refinery plants for the production of fuels and lubricants.

Petrobras announced the start of commercial operation of the first module of the UPGN, with a processing capacity of 10.5 million cubic meters of natural gas per day, on November 11, 2024. At the time of the announcement, it was assumed that the second module would go into operation by the end of the year.

Yesterday, the energy company announced that the second module of the UPGN has commenced commercial operation. Together with the first module, the total processing capacity of the plant is now 21 million cubic meters per day.

April was here and it's already over again. Trump's liberation day was not as liberating as we now know. Nevertheless, a lot happened and the stock market remained very volatile in April. After initially falling sharply, it stabilized towards the middle of the month and ultimately rose again, leaving the S&P500 at -3.62% at the end of the month.

In April, I recorded a loss of 3.68%. Given the size of my portfolio, this corresponds to a value of almost €4,000.

Thanks to the dividends, which are gross here in the picture (net = €272.65), this amount is then reduced to just under €3,700.

The Dax (+0.80%) has beaten me again, but compared to the HSBC MSCI World (-4.24%) I am doing better again.

Over the year as a whole (YTD), I have lost ground again to the DAX, which has risen again. At the same time, however, I was able to further extend my lead over the MSCI World. However, as can be seen above, the MSCI World caught up considerably towards the end of the month.

April again showed that my portfolio is quite stable. That's the price you pay if you give up positive returns. Of course, everyone has to decide for themselves how well they can sleep.

My high and low performers in April were (top 3):

Nintendo ($7974 (+0.03%) ) +15,32%

Eon ($EOAN (-0.64%) ) +10,42%

Tesla ($TSLA (+1.5%) ) +8,87%

Pepsi ($PEP (+0.5%) ) -14,93%

UnitedHealth ($UNH (+0.6%) ) -20,62%

Petroleo Brasileiro ($PETR4 (-0.41%) ) -20,89%

Interesting that UnitedHealth was the second-worst stock in February, the second-best in March and now the second-worst again. A very volatile stock at the moment. Understandable, however, after the recent events.

Dividends:

In April, I received €272.65 net from a total of 15 distributions.

Compared to March 2024 (€182.13), this was an increase of 49.7%.

I now expect another increase in May before it falls sharply again afterwards.

Investments:

As in February and also in March, I am still building up my nest egg again. This was actually planned to be completed in April or May at the latest. But now the car is broken and the repairs will cost a lot. So the replenishment continues.

The special payment in April went into the $XEON (+0.01%). I also treated myself to a South African government bond, which will also mature in the year the first loan is due. I'm happy to take the 8% until then and if I don't see the money again, then it was a try and I can cope with it.

Buying and selling:

I sold Monster with a plus of 12.3%. Simply because I want to reduce the size of the portfolio, Monster does not pay a dividend and we were very close to the all-time high in April.

I bought or increased Gladstone Investment (I'm happy to take the special dividend in June), Texas Instruments, LVMH, Rio Tinto, United Health, Lockheed Martin and Waste Management.

Savings plans (125€ in total):

• Cintas ($CTAS (+0.64%) )
• LVMH ($MC (-0.15%) )
• Microsoft ($MSFT (+0.76%) )

Target 2025:

My goal is still to have € 130,000 in my portfolio at the end of the year. The goal is to be achieved by reinvesting the dividend, making payments and, of course, increasing the share price. The share price increase is of course impossible to predict in any way, so the motto is: if the share price falls or does not rise enough, more cash is needed.

This comes from selling useless stuff on eBay, additional income from e.g. "neighborhood help" etc.

The worse the share price, the more additional cash has to be raised.

Target achievement at the end of April 2025: 22.22%

I'm slowly lagging behind the average. It's definitely going to be very sporty this year.

Let's see what else is coming. Now that Trump has probably signed a commodities deal with Ukraine, the share price will rise again somewhat, at least in the next few days. After that it will be uncertain again.

How was your April? As the getquin monthly report for March was not published, I am now looking forward to the April report.

If you liked the report and would like to read more, feel free to follow me,

If you're not interested, you can keep scrolling or use the block function.

The state-owned Brazilian oil company Petrobras $PETR3 (+0.79%)
$PETR4 (-0.41%) reported oil, gas and liquefied natural gas production of 2.77 million barrels of oil equivalent per day (boed) in the first quarter on Tuesday, a decrease of 0.2% compared to the previous year.

Petrobras' oil production in Brazil fell 1% year-on-year to 2.21 million barrels per day (bpd), the company said, adding that the floating production vessel Almirante Tamandare (FPSO) started production in the country's Buzios field in February.

"The commissioning of the Almirante Tamandare floating production vessel is of strategic importance for Petrobras and represents a sustainable expansion of production," Renata Baruzzi, head of engineering, technology and innovation, said in Petrobras' sales and production report.

The company's results were in line with the annual forecast, which envisages a 4% deviation from the production target of 2.8 million boed.

Total sales of oil, gas and derivatives reached 2.86 million boed, the company said, representing a decrease of 1.9% compared to the first quarter of 2024.

Total exports fell by 10.4% year-on-year to around 760,000 bpd, the company said.

While exports in general declined, the share of oil exports to Asia (excluding China) increased from 10% to 33%.

In the first quarter, the company concluded an agreement with the Indian Bharat Petroleum Corporation $BPCL for the export of up to 6 million barrels of oil per year from 2025.

"The agreement strengthens the commercial relationship between Petrobras and the Indian refining sector and underlines the importance of India as a market for Brazilian oil," Petrobras said in the press release.

Brazilian state-owned energy giant Petrobras $PETR3 (+0.79%)
$PETR4 (-0.41%) is seeking to attract new Chinese investment in Brazil's oil and gas sector, particularly in the marine sector, the company announced on Tuesday during the visit of CEO Magda Chambriard to Asia.

Chambriard and President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's chief of staff, Rui Costa, met with Chinese businessmen and government officials in Beijing on Monday, the company said in a statement.

According to the company, they gave an overview of Petrobras' activities and emphasized the potential for the expansion of shipyards in Latin America's largest country.

"We are here to propose the expansion of the partnership between Brazil and China in oil and gas investments," Chambriard said.

"We know that there are opportunities for Chinese companies to work with Brazilian shipyards and believe that increased cooperation would be beneficial for our countries," said Chambriard.

Lula, a former metalworker, has made it a priority to create jobs in local shipyards - a sector that has struggled for years - with Petrobras, which has already ordered several new ships.

The oil giant's transportation and logistics subsidiary, Transpetro, plans to put 25 ships into operation by 2030.

The Brazilian mining company Vale $VALE3 (+0.61%) and the oil and gas giant Petrobras $PETR3 (+0.79%)
$PETR4 (-0.41%) have entered into a commercial partnership to test a biofuel blend with 24% second-generation biodiesel on a ship chartered by Vale.

As part of this partnership, the bulk carrier Luise Oldendorff, chartered by Oldendorff Carriers, was fueled with ultra-low sulfur (VLS) B24 on April 22 in Singapore for testing purposes.

The fuel was formulated by Petrobras Singapore in their locally leased tanks by blending 76% fossil fuel oil from the Petrobras system refineries and 24% UCOME, a biofuel derived from the processing of used cooking oil (UCO) purchased in the region.

The product is ISCC EU-certified, meaning it meets the strict sustainability criteria, a requirement that accompanies the entire logistics chain of the biofuel in this process, Petrobras explained.

The biofuel bunker test is a continuation of the strategic partnership between Vale and Petrobras, which focuses on competitiveness and advancing the decarbonization agenda, including the development of sustainable fuels.

"We are increasingly developing sustainable fuels and delivering on our commitment to decarbonize our operations. The partnership with Vale is another achievement in Petrobras' goal to improve the company's production capacity and logistics structure to bring greener products to the market and strengthen our decarbonization strategy," said Petrobras President Magda Chambriard.

On multiple recommendation and because I actually wanted to get into the stock 2 years ago, but always found something else...got in today.

I am excited

Petrobras $PETR3 (+0.79%)
$PETR4 (-0.41%) announced a 3.38% reduction in diesel prices at the state-owned company's refineries on Thursday (17.04.).

Since 18.04.2025, the price per liter has been reduced from R$ 3.55 to R$ 3.43, a decrease of R$ 0.12 per liter.

This is the second reduction in diesel prices in less than a month. The last adjustment of the diesel price was on 01.04.2025.

On Wednesday (16.04.), Petrobras CEO Magda Chambriard explained that the company had been monitoring the prices of petroleum products on the international market in light of the turbulent situation following the new tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump on imported products.

Oil prices have fallen sharply since Trump's tariff increase. Ms. Chambriard said that one had to be careful to assess the international situation before making any decisions. "We cannot plunge Brazil into chaos that we did not cause.

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries $MHVIY and Single Buoy Moorings, the subsidiary of SBM Offshore, have agreed to conduct a study on the use of CO2 capture modules on future floating production, storage and offloading vessels (FPSOs) for Petrobras $PETR3 (+0.79%)
$PETR4 (-0.41%) to carry out the study.

This study will be carried out with a view to a typical implementation of CO2 capture solutions for FPSOs.

The module design for FPSOs is based on a combination of MHI's proprietary Advanced KM CDR Process CO2 capture technology and SBM's Fast4Ward principles.

The study focuses on the capture of CO2 emitted from on-board gas turbines, with analysis and evaluation being carried out with a view to future commercialization.

This is the first result of a partnership agreement between MHI and SBM in September 2023.

The agreement, which is a response to the rapidly growing demand for decarbonization, aims to accelerate business development in the field of CO2 capture solutions for FPSOs to contribute to achieving carbon neutrality on a global scale.

The Annual General Meeting of Petrobras $PETR3 (+0.79%)
$PETR4 (-0.41%) approved the distribution of R$9.1 billion as an ordinary dividend for the 2024 financial year. The distribution had previously been approved by the Board of Directors in February. The meeting also confirmed an earlier report that the federal government - the oil company's main shareholder - would only fill six of the eight available seats on the board of directors.

The newly approved R$9.1 billion adds to the compensation already distributed to shareholders last year. Petrobras distributed a total of R$ 75.8 billion for the 2024 financial year - R$ 73.9 billion in the form of dividends and interest on equity and R$ 1.9 billion for share buybacks.

In the elections to the Board of Directors, which were held according to the unbundled voting system, the government won six seats - five incumbents and one newcomer: José Fernando Coura, former President of the Brazilian Mining Institute (IBRAM). The five reappointed members are CEO Magda Chambriard, Pietro Mendes, Renato Galuppo, Rafael Dubeux and Bruno Moretti.

The system of unbundled voting, which is increasingly used in Petrobras elections, tends to favor minority shareholders as it allows them to concentrate their votes on certain candidates. To trigger this voting system, investors must collectively hold at least 5% of the company's capital. On April 14, Petrobras announced that shareholders reaching this threshold had requested the unbundled voting system.

Two candidates supported by the government - Ivanyra Maura Correia and Benjamin Alves Rabello - were not elected. Their seats were instead filled by the candidates nominated by the minority shareholders, Aloisio Macário and José João (Juca) Abdalla Filho. Mr. Abdalla controls about 2% of Petrobras' capital and, according to sources, took the floor during the meeting to thank Chairman Francisco Costa e Silva. Another minority candidate, Thales Kroth, was not elected despite running for the second time in a row.

The elected members of the Board of Directors will remain in office until 2026, completing the term of office that began in April 2023. Following the departure of former CEO Jean Paul Prates in May 2024, a new election became necessary. As Mr. Prates had been elected by uncommitted election, the company was obliged to call a new election for his seat. Petrobras' governance model stipulates that the CEO also holds a position on the Board of Directors.

The shareholders also re-elected Pietro Mendes as Chairman. However, Mendes could soon step down as he has been nominated for a leadership position in Brazil's National Agency for Petroleum, Natural Gas and Biofuels (ANP), which still needs to be confirmed by the Senate.

Petrobras also held an extraordinary general meeting at which shareholders approved several amendments to the company's articles of association. These included provisions that allow compensation for members of board committees during the mandatory cooling-off period after leaving office.

A further amendment formally included carbon capture and storage in Petrobras' scope of activities.