Petrobras Has An Annual Loss Of R$ 150 Million Due To Fuel Theft

US$ 150 million in losses every year. This is the amount lost by Petrobras due to the actions of criminal groups against oil and fuel transportation pipelines.

Criminals have discovered that the illegal sale of fuels is a good business, especially during times when prices are higher and the economy is in recession. Most of the time, the focus of the criminals is on crude oil, but there are also thefts of derivatives, such as gasoline, diesel oil, and even petrochemical naphtha, which, when mixed with automotive fuels, tends to end up at resellers and in car tanks.

The actions of criminal groups on the oil and fuel transportation pipelines already cause losses of US$ 150 million to Petrobras annually. In 2018, there were 261 attempts and actual episodes of theft. Most of the thefts are in the states of São Paulo (151) and Rio de Janeiro (69).

The problem has reached Guarulhos International Airport in São Paulo, which frequently has aviation fuel delivery interrupted because Transpetro, a subsidiary of Petrobras that operates the pipelines, is forced to halt pipeline activities where criminals have acted.

The state-owned company is concerned about the effects of leaks on communities that have settled near the pipelines, sources say. At the end of last month, a 9-year-old child died in Duque de Caxias, in the Baixada Fluminense, after falling into a pool of pure gasoline that escaped from a punctured pipeline.

The company fears that tragedies like this will repeat themselves and escalate, putting entire communities at risk.

In addition to financial losses and fatalities, the company also wants to prevent the repetition in the country of the violence scenario experienced in Mexico, where theft from pipelines motivates murders and imposes annual costs of about US$ 1.5 billion on the oil company Pemex.

To reduce losses, Petrobras will launch the Pró-Dutos intelligence and security program. The idea is to develop a partnership with state governments to combat the theft of oil and derivatives in their transportation networks.

The president of Petrobras, Roberto Castello Branco, will be present today at 10 a.m. at the launch ceremony of the Integrated Petrobras Program for Pipeline Protection (Pró-Dutos), which brings together the Federal Police, the Public Prosecutor’s Office, and other entities. The agreement will be signed with the governments of São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro.

“During the event, intentions protocols will be signed with state governments for cooperation in the fields of intelligence and security to minimize the risks and impacts of thefts of products transported by the pipelines”, the company informed in a statement. The launch will take place at Petrobras headquarters in downtown Rio.

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