Panel SA: Request for a Petrobras policy review spreads across sectors of the economy

Pressures to revise Petrobras’ international price parity policy are no longer a discourse linked to truck drivers and are beginning to spread across various sectors of the economy.

Marco Aurélio Barcelos, director-president of ABCR (association of highway concessionaires), says that there is a red alert in the sector in relation to the increase in prices.

“The highway concession sector recognizes that the significant increase in the price of CAP [cimento asfáltico de petróleo] in recent months has undermined concessions. This impacts the financial sustainability of the projects,” he says.

Barcelos says that the companies studied importing asphalt from Russia, but were prevented by the war.

“We are hostage to a practically monopolistic performance. Petrobras is the only national provider of these inputs and the entire sector is hostage to the policy it establishes in relation to these inputs”, he says.

The director of ABCR says that there are conversations with the Ministry of Infrastructure and ANTT (National Land Transport Agency) about alternatives to circumvent the situation, which affects current and future contracts.

“If there is no solution, governments will start to face problems of competitiveness in the bids for highway concessions. Either the number of interested companies will be reduced because the price is too high or we will run the risk of having deserted bids”, he says.

José Carlos Martins, president of CBIC (the construction industry, which was also hit by the increase in diesel and asphalt), complains about a monopoly.

“Petrobras is the only real, unregulated monopoly. Employees and shareholders decide how much Brazilians will pay. They are only concerned with their salaries and dividends”, he says.

The president of Abiplast (plastics industry association), José Ricardo Roriz, also defends a review of the current policy.

“Although Brazil has become self-sufficient in oil and subsidized ethanol production for a long time, Brazilians will pay a high price with the consequences of the war in Ukraine. of alcohol”, he says.

The ANTF (Associação Nacional dos Transportes Ferroviários) says that it does not defend the revision of Petrobras’ prices, but has directed its efforts to balance the cash flow of concessionaires, which suffer from the high price of diesel. Fuel accounts for about 35% of a railroad’s operating cost.

According to Fernando Paes, executive director of the entity, the sector is preparing a study to send to ANTT talking about the impacts of the mega-increase on the operation and construction of new railways.
The material also presents possible solutions. One of the alternatives would be the revision of tariff ceilings, which determine the maximum amount that can be charged per ton in each stretch.

“With the increase in diesel, there are stretches that, even if we put the tariff to the maximum ceiling, we managed to make it profitable”, says Paes.

The entity must also suggest as options the reduction of payments of grants and lease fees, the revaluation of investments and even the extension of the term of the concessions.

Abear, an association that brings together major airlines in Brazil, is also in favor of reviewing Petrobras’ international price parity policy, especially after the new increase in the price of QAV (aviation kerosene), on Friday (1st) , which surpassed 18% in Guarulhos and other airports.

Joana Cunha with Andressa motter and Ana Paula Branco