Petrobras Distribuidora will be a new company from 2021

The president of BR Distribuidora, Rafael Grisolia, said that the Petrobras subsidiary will be a new company from 2021.

The declaration took place last Thursday, August 01st, during a teleconference to investors. According to Grisolia, BR Distribuidora should adopt measures to match the competition. One of the first steps towards changing the company was privatization, completed on July 24th.

“The years 2019 and 2020 are years of execution, when we will work harder and harder to deliver these ten initiatives jointly. From 2021, we will be able to see the result of this effort, which we will do so intensely and with so much enthusiasm, now, with BR privatized”, said the president.

After the privatization last week, the purchase of equipment no longer follows the State-owned Law. Thus, Grisolia stated that the acquisition now takes place "trying to follow the best market practices". The distributor's board of directors will also undergo changes.

Over the coming weeks, the new nominees will be analyzed by the shareholders. As informed by the President, the company should seek cost reduction and greater market share. Furthermore, there is an expectation of perceptible improvement in logistics in the coming quarters.

The president of the former state-owned company also spoke about the possibility of new commercial negotiations. “We hope that, with the opening of refining, other opportunities will appear. What opportunities will we have in future negotiations with eventual new owners of a refinery?”, said Grisolia.

The sale of minor assets was also mentioned during the conference call. According to the company's financial director, André Natal, after the privatization, BR Distribuidora started to have more freedom to sell assets.

Privatization of BR Distribuidora BR Distribuidora had 30% of its shares sold by Petrobras. The value of the sale was approximately R$ 8,6 billion. After the transaction, the subsidiary ceased to be a state-owned company.

An item present in the agreement may cause the sale of BR Distribuidora shares to rise to 35% of the company's capital. Thus, the amount can reach R$ 9,6 billion. These amounts can help Petrobras reduce its debts. With the sale of shares, Petrobras will now hold 41,25% of the subsidiary's capital.

BR Distribuidora has 7.700 gas stations and operates in 99 airports. With the operation announced last Tuesday (23), Petrobras no longer has control over the distributor.

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