Bolsonaro Launches Critics at Petrobras, and Government Authorizes the Ministry of Mines and Energy to Warn Gas Stations That Do Not Comply With the Fuel Price Reduction Approved by Congress

The President Continues With Sour Comments on the Petrobras Announcement of Increased Fuel Prices. The State-Owned Company Claims That, Unlike What the Government Says, the Price Increases Were Necessary

On Saturday, March 12, the Government stated that it would request the Minister of Mines and Energy, Bento Albuquerque, to warn gas stations that remain with the price disclosed by Petrobras. The gas stations should reduce the prices charged at the pumps after the tax changes voted and approved in Congress.

Read Also Other News About Fuel Price Changes:

• To Reduce the Price of Gasoline, Ethanol, Diesel, Gas, and Kerosene, Federal Deputies Approve a Bill Fixing ICMS on Fuels Across the Country;
• The Freezing of Petrobras Fuel Prices and Reduction of ICMS Are Highlighted Among Federal Government Proposals to Mitigate the Effects of Rising Oil Prices;
• To Reduce the Impact of Fuel Prices on Their Economies, Brazil and Other Countries Are Adopting Measures to Contain Barrel Oil Prices, Which Exceeded US$ 130.

According to the Metrópole portal and also reported by the newspaper O Globo, the government lamented Petrobras’s decision to not wait for the completion of the Congressional vote, which took place on Thursday, the 10th, before establishing the fuel price increases. Instead of waiting, Petrobras announced an 18.8% increase in gasoline and a 24.9% increase in diesel at refineries, along with a 16.1% increase in liquefied petroleum gas. On Friday, the day after the announcement, the new price determination took effect.

The President stated that if Petrobras had waited until the end of the vote, it could have announced an increase of R$ 0.30 per liter of diesel, which corresponds to one-third of what was actually announced by the state-owned company (R$ 0.90). According to the government, gas stations will be notified about the need to reduce fuel prices for consumers.

“The order to lower R$ 0.60 hasn’t been communicated yet. It will be notified. I will contact the Minister of Mines and Energy to see what has already been done to notify those who need to lower R$ 0.60 in the diesel price. It equates to a portion of the ICMS and all federal tax that I eliminated,” he declared in the city of Luziânia, near Brasília, in the state of Goiás.

Government Criticism of Petrobras

The President also took a more direct jab at Petrobras regarding its decision, which he considered hasty, to increase fuel prices: “Petrobras shows that it has no sensitivity to the population, it’s Petrobras Football Club and the rest can explode.”

For its part, the state-owned company defended its action: for it, the price increases for fuels were necessary to mitigate “risks of supply shortages.” Petrobras also commented on the record profit of the company achieved last year, which reached R$ 106.6 billion: “It may seem very high, but it is not.”

Watch the Clip Released on YouTube by the Foco do Brasil Channel, Where President Bolsonaro Praises the Senate for Reducing Fuel Prices for Consumers:

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