Petrobras will refund customers for the excess amounts paid during the gas auction held on March 31. The product was sold at prices up to 100% higher than those listed by the state-owned company.
The company announced it will cover the difference between the Import Parity Price (PPI), published by the National Agency of Petroleum (ANP) for the period from March 23 to 27, and the bids won by distributors participating in the auction.
In a statement on Wednesday (8), the oil company said it will execute the “neutralization of price effects resulting from the liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) auction.”
“The decision is supported by economic and risk analyses, taking into account the exceptional nature of the current market context, stemming from the conflict in the Middle East. It also considers the statements from control and regulatory bodies, such as ANP and the National Consumer Secretariat.”
The company also assured the delivery of the total volumes contracted in the auction and stated that it is reviewing formal adherence to the government subsidy program for imported LPG, established by Provisional Measure No. 1,349. Should this occur, it will also refund customers “the amounts covered by the subsidy.”
On April 2, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva stated he would annul the process as it was conducted “against the will of Petrobras’ management.”
On the same day, the National Agency of Petroleum, Natural Gas and Biofuels (ANP), the sector’s regulatory body linked to the Ministry of Mines and Energy (MME), inspected Petrobras refineries to investigate “suspicions of high price premiums” in the cooking gas auction.
Four days later, Petrobras removed Claudio Romeo Schlosser from his position as Executive Director of Logistics, Commercialization, and Markets, who was responsible for the company area that conducted the auction.
Although commonly known as cooking gas, LPG is also used as fuel by industries.
The auction took place amid rising oil and derivative prices in the international market due to the war between the United States and Iran, which impacted the production chain of the raw material.
At the same time, the government was exploring ways to mitigate the effects of rising oil and derivative prices. In this regard, a set of measures was announced, including tax exemptions and subsidies for diesel and cooking gas.
Source: Agência Brasil.
Original published at O Cafezinho.