BNDES: there will be no shortage of resources for Petrobras, says Mercadante – 06/22/2023 – Market

The president of the BNDES (National Bank for Economic and Social Development), Aloizio Mercadante, said this Thursday (22) that he is debating with the federal government any changes in rules for the bank to expand investments in Petrobras.

The statement took place at a press conference alongside the president of the state-owned company, Jean Paul Prates, in Rio de Janeiro. “It won’t be for lack of BNDES resources that Petrobras will stop investing,” said Mercadante.

This Thursday, the two institutions announced the creation of a commission to evaluate topics such as energy transition, innovation and reindustrialization.

According to Mercadante, the BNDES owns around 7% of Petrobras’ shares, equivalent to around R$ 24 billion.

He stated that, in order to expand investments in the state-owned company, the bank seeks to separate the BNDESPar portfolio from its balance sheet. BNDESPar is the financial arm of the BNDES for contributions and stakes in companies.

“We have an ordinance from the Central Bank that establishes limits, because BNDESPar is within the bank’s assets”, said the PT candidate.

“We are discussing with the federal government, with the Ministry of Finance, the Civil House, to change some rules and allow us to be more present in this investment in a company as solid and as strategic as Petrobras is”, he added.

Among the priorities, according to Mercadante, would be support for reindustrialization projects, energy transition and promotion of research.

“The central problem of the BNDES in relation to other banks is having the entire BNDESPar portfolio within the bank’s balance sheet. No bank does that,” he said.

“If we remove BNDESPar from the bank’s balance sheet, we will have very significant space to finance Petrobras. This is the strategic path to resolve, the priority path,” he added.