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Petrobras, the Brazilian State Oil Company, Must Present a New Schedule for TBG Sale to Cade (Administrative Council for Economic Defense).
The natural gas transporter, which operates the Bolivia-Brazil Pipeline, is one of the assets in the process of disinvestment by Petrobras, which was required to sell them under an agreement signed in 2019 with Cade. The sale of the state’s 51% stake in the transporter was supposed to be completed by December 2021. However, Petrobras was unsuccessful in selling TBG within the original deadline. Now, the company must present a new plan for the sale of TBG to Cade, still subject to the board’s approval.
This process is part of the agreement signed between Petrobras and Cade, which required the state company to sell eight oil refineries and stakes in four natural gas companies. The sale of TBG, along with the 25% stake of the state in TSB (South Brazilian Gas Transporter), is the only part that has not yet been completed.
Suspension of Disinvestment Processes
The Ministry of Mines and Energy has been seeking the suspension of Petrobras’s disinvestment processes, including the sale of TBG. However, the decision depends on the review of the strategic plan for 2023, to be submitted by the new executive board.
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The strategic plan guides the company’s investments for the next five years and is revised annually. The most recent one was published in November 2022, during the management of Caio Paes de Andrade, the last appointed by former President Jair Bolsonaro (PL).
Agreement with Cade
In 2019, at the beginning of the Bolsonaro administration, Petrobras signed two agreements with Cade, one of which was related to natural gas. This agreement was the result of an administrative inquiry by Cade, which investigated whether the state company was engaging in price discrimination in selling the input to distributors. Petrobras was an indirect shareholder of GásBrasiliano Distribuidora through Gaspetro.
The TCC (Term of Conduct Cessation) determined that Petrobras should sell 10% in NTS (Nova Transportadora do Sudeste), 10% in TAG (Transportadora Associada de Gás), 51% in TBG (Brazilian Transporter Bolivia-Brazil Pipeline), and 51% in Gaspetro.
Petrobras managed to divest all the stakes except for TBG. Now, the company is looking to present a new sales plan to complete the disinvestment.
The disinvestment process of Petrobras, including the sale of TBG, has been the subject of discussions both in the government and among investors. While the state company seeks to comply with the agreement signed with Cade, the Ministry of Mines and Energy tries to suspend the disinvestment processes for a review of the strategic plan.
