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Fiesp President, Josué Gomes, States That Sector Seeks Sustainable Long-Term Pricing Policy Without Government Benefits.
The Brazilian industrial sector is not seeking subsidies or benefits for the price of natural gas. The statement was made by Josué Gomes, president of the Federation of Industries of São Paulo (Fiesp), on Monday (16/6). During a seminar, he defended the creation of a sustainable policy that ensures access to the input at more competitive prices, a request that, according to him, finds support in the Ministry of Mines and Energy.
The Search for a Sustainable Policy for Natural Gas
In his opening speech at the seminar on the Gas to Employ program, Josué Gomes was emphatic. He emphasized that the industry wants permanent solutions. “I am sure that the ministry’s proposals and what we are asking for are, in fact, sustainable,” he stated. “We are not asking for subsidies, we are not asking for anything that does not have longevity and sustainability,” he added. The remarks were made at the event organized by Fiesp, which was attended by the Minister of Mines and Energy, Alexandre Silveira.
Industrial Competitiveness Threatened by High Costs
The current price of natural gas in Brazil is one of the main factors compromising the competitiveness of the national industry. Gomes mentioned that the price in the country reaches $14 or $16 dollars per million BTU. Meanwhile, many international competitors pay about $3 dollars for the same unit.
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Industries such as petrochemicals, glass, and ceramic tiles are among the most affected by this scenario. According to Gomes, one alternative to increase the competitiveness of the Brazilian market would be access to Argentina’s unconventional natural gas reserves. “Argentina has gas from the Vaca Morta reserves, and we can bring this gas to Brazil,” he noted.
Union Gas Auction Is the Government’s Bet
The government, in turn, is betting on the Gas to Employ program to lower the cost of the input. The main initiative of the Ministry of Mines and Energy (MME) is the holding of an auction for natural gas belonging to the Union. The expectation is that this measure will offer a cheaper molecule to industries, with an estimated price between $7 and $8 dollars per million BTU. This amount represents less than half of what is currently paid.
However, Minister Alexandre Silveira admitted at the same event that the auction may be delayed. The new forecast is that it will take place in the first half of 2026.
Infrastructure and Costs Are Barriers to Cheaper Natural Gas
The main obstacle to enabling the auction and reducing the price of natural gas is the cost of access to infrastructure. The flow and processing facilities, operated by Petrobras, have considered high tariffs. The MME has been pressuring the oil company to reduce these costs, based on a technical note from the Energy Research Company (EPE).
According to the EPE, access costs could be reduced to about $2.2 dollars per million BTU. Currently, government studies estimate that this cost is $6.4 dollars per million BTU.
Petrobras Advocates for Supply Expansion as a Path Forward
Present at the event, the Executive Manager of Gas and Energy at Petrobras, Álvaro Tupiassu, presented the company’s perspective. He argued that the sustainable path to improve competitiveness is to increase the supply of national natural gas. For this, Tupiassu argued that the company needs legal and regulatory stability to advance with new projects.
“What we want is to increase the supply. Because this is the sustainable foundation to bring increasingly competitive gas,” he stated, highlighting that this approach avoids the future need for subsidies or other temporary solutions.
With information from Eixos.
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