Diesel and gasoline from Petrobras are more expensive than abroad, according to surveys

The average prices of Petrobras gasoline and diesel sold to distributors in Brazil are above the import parity, making room for the oil company to reduce prices in its refineries, experts pointed out this Monday (6).

Premiums for both of the company’s fuels against global prices increased over the last week, after a retreat in oil prices in the international market, in the face of concerns about higher interest rates in the US. Brent was down 7.8% last week, while WTI was down 7.9%. On Monday, commodity values ​​rose by about 1%.

The movement took place a little over a week after the new president of Petrobras, Jean Paul Prates, took office, who has been defending the end of the application of the import parity for the formation of the oil company’s prices, without disregarding international indicators such as the price of the Brent.

“The international market has dropped a lot in recent days and opened space for who knows soon we will have some downward readjustment by Petrobras,” Pedro Shinzato, an oil and derivatives analyst at StoneX, told Reuters.

StoneX calculates that Petrobras would have to cut diesel by 16.8% and gasoline by 11.6% to reach average parity.

Shinzato and other experts pondered, however, that there are factors today that could change this scenario, such as the entry into force on the eve of the European Union embargo against Russian diesel, which could tighten fuel supply and raise prices globally.

The decision of when and how to readjust prices at refineries, however, is part of Petrobras’ strategy and, therefore, it is not possible to predict. The state-owned company does not usually anticipate movements or comment on fuel prices, whose readjustments are defined by the company’s president and two other directors, finance and commercialization.

Since 2016, the oil company has been following the import parity, which considers important variables such as global oil reference values ​​and the dollar. But the moment to make adjustments depends on other commercial variables, considered by the company.

“There really are lags. However, this is not the time to make adjustments, since the expectation is for an increase in prices in the international market”, pointed out to Reuters the executive president of Abicom (Brazilian Association of Fuel Importers), Sérgio Araujo, citing the European embargo on Russian diesel.

“The embargo initiated this weekend should lead to a reduction in supply and, therefore, an increase in prices.”

In Abicom’s calculations, Petrobras’ diesel is 18% above import parity, while gasoline is 10% above.

The CBIE (Brazilian Infrastructure Center) calculates that Petrobras’ diesel prices are 14.14% above par, while gasoline is 8.86%.

Since taking office, Prates has not yet made fuel adjustments. The other executives who decide on prices are still from the previous management, which was guided by the import parity.

Prates has already appointed a new commercialization director, in addition to four other new executives for the company’s boards in the new management. The names are being evaluated by Petrobras integrity committees. But there is still no nominee to occupy the financial directorate.