Page 11 - LatAmOil Week 17 2021

LatAmOil BRAZIL LatAmOil

Petrobras attributed the year-on-year decline to the fourth quarter of 2020.
the maturation of several oilfields and the recent The NOC also said that several of its pre-
divestment of a number of upstream assets. It salt fields had seen production rise in the first
also noted that offshore fields in the pre-salt quarter of 2021. The increase was particularly
zone had accounted for about 69% of its total noticeable at Búzios, where improved stabilisa-
output, or 1.9mn boepd, and pointed out that tion and efficiency measures had brought yields
pre-salt yields were down by 6.3% compared to up by 14% y/y, it said. ™

Petrobras board OKs sale of 10% NTS stake

BRAZIL’S national oil company (NOC) Petro-
bras has secured approval from its board of
directors for the planned sale of a minority stake
in Nova Transportadora do Sudeste (NTS), one
of its former midstream subsidiaries, to a private
investor.
In a statement dated April 28, Petrobras said
that board members had given a green light for
the sale of a 10% stake in the natural gas pipeline
operator to Nova Infraestrutura Gasodutos Par-
ticipações (NIGP), a company controlled indi-
rectly by NTS’s two main shareholders. These
shareholders, Brookfield Brasil Asset Manage-
ment Investimentos and Itaúsa, manage Nova
Infraestrutura Fundo de Investimentos em Par-
ticipações Multiestratégia (FIP), the investment
fund that founded NIGP.
Now that the directors have approved the
transaction, Petrobras is in a position to final-
ise the sale, which will bring its holdings in
NTS down to zero. According to the statement,
the NOC expects to sign a sale and purchase
agreement (SPA) with NIGP and close the deal NTS serves states that make up half of Brazil’s gas consumption (Image: Petrobras)
shortly.
Petrobras estimated the value of the sale promoting competition in the gas sector. That
at BRL1.8bn ($337mn) and said it expected agreement has paved the way for Petrobras to
NIGP to pay BRL1.5bn ($281mn) in cash when unload other midstream assets.
the deal was finalised. It then explained the NTS is the operator of a gas transport sys-
BRL300mn ($56mn) gap as the consequence tem that includes about 2,000 km of pipelines
of “the discount of dividends, interest on equity serving customers in three states that account
and restitution through capital reduction for about half of the country’s total consump-
received by Petrobras throughout 2020 and 2021 tion – namely, Minas Gerais, Rio de Janeiro and
and the other adjustments provided for in the São Paulo. This network is capable of handling
contract as per the base date.” 158.2mn cubic metres per day of gas and is con-
The NOC has divested its holdings in NTS in nected to several domestic gas transportation
line with an agreement that it signed in July 2019 systems, as well as a pipeline built to import gas
with CADE, Brazil’s state anti-trust agency, on from neighbouring Bolivia. ™

BOLIVIA
YPFB sees revenues rising 35% this year

WILSON Zelaya, the CEO of Bolivia’s national Initial Public Accountability Hearing last week,
oil company (NOC) YPFB, says conditions are reported that YPFB was on track to see crude oil
improving in his country’s hydrocarbon sector. and natural gas revenues rise above $1.9bn this
Zelaya, speaking during the 2021 year, up by 35% on the 2020 figure.

Week 17 29•April•2021 www. NEWSBASE .com P11