Despite Recently Becoming the Third Largest Oil Supplier to China, Ahead of the United States, Brazil Remains a Relatively Small Seller to the Asian Country
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In an interview as part of the Reuters Commodity Trading Summit, CEO Roberto Castello Branco said that oil sales to China – an increasingly vital export market for Brazilian oil – will continue to grow amid strong industrial growth there and the acceleration of some of the largest offshore fields in the world in Brazil.
But the recently reorganized marketing and logistics division of the state company is actively exploring additional markets, particularly in Asia.
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Petrobras has begun seeking new buyers in India, hoping to become a relevant customer within three years, as it looks to diversify its buyer mix and minimize its dependence on China.
“We expect this to have a positive evolution in the near future, in about three years to have a consolidated position in the (Indian) market,” Castello Branco told Reuters.
The company has also increased fuel oil exports to Singapore. The country, which acts as a shipping hub, has increased purchases of Petrobras’s low-sulfur fuel to comply with new maritime legislation aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
The production from its massive deepwater field in Búzios is boosting Brazil’s oil surplus and has allowed Petrobras to raise its production target for 2020 by 5% in recent weeks.
The Brazilian oil company is also preparing to face tougher domestic competition as it sells refineries and seeks to end its near-monopoly in Brazilian fuel production. “To face stronger competition, we created a division for logistics, sales, and marketing … to act as an active seller, not a passive one,” said the CEO.
Despite recently becoming the third largest oil supplier to China, ahead of the United States, Brazil remains a relatively small seller to the Asian country compared to Russia and Saudi Arabia, Castello Branco said – but not for lack of appetite. China would absorb all the oil Brazil has to offer and often pays a premium for its oil from the Tupi field, the executive said.
In April, Petrobras reached the historic milestone of 1 million barrels per day of crude oil shipped to China, as a sharp drop in domestic fuel consumption diverted oil from national refineries. “At the moment, we do not have the capacity to sell 1 million (barrels per day),” he said. “With increased oil production, we will have availability for that.”

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