Petrobras profit falls 33.8% in 2023 and dividends plummet 66%

Petrobras recorded a 33.8% drop in net profit in 2023 compared to 2022, according to the balance sheet released this Thursday (7) by the state-owned company. The reduction should also lead to a smaller distribution of dividends, with an estimated drop of 66% compared to the previous year.

According to the state-owned company, net profit in 2023 was R$124.6 billion, while, in 2022, the amount reached R$188.3 billion, the highest in the historical series. In the fourth quarter of last year, Petrobras made a profit of R$31 billion, a reduction of 28.4% compared to the last three months of 2022.

The president of Petrobras, Jean Paul Prates, credited this reduction in profit to the 18% drop in the international price of “Brent” oil, a reference in oil trading. However, he states that there was a record production and increased investment.

“Even in this most challenging scenario, we broke production records after production records, increased investments, reduced financial debt and put four new platforms into operation in this first year of management”, he pointed out.

The reduction in Petrobras’ profit also directly affects the payment of dividends, which are estimated to reach R$72.4 billion, with R$14.2 billion of this amount still awaiting approval by the state-owned company’s Ordinary General Assembly, scheduled for the day April 25.

If the total amount of R$72.4 billion is confirmed, it will be a 66% reduction compared to 2022, when the state-owned company paid R$217 billion. In a statement, Petrobras stated that the calculations used to calculate the dividends were approved at a meeting in July last year.

“The approval of the dividend is compatible with the company’s financial sustainability and is in line with the commitment to generating value for society and shareholders, as well as the best practices of the global oil and natural gas industry”, he pointed out.

The high dividends already paid by Petrobras were the target of strong criticism from the PT, being called “indecent” by the party president, Gleisi Hoffmann. A year ago, she preached a review of values ​​and the end of the current mechanism for pricing fuels, the so-called “PPI”, or Import Parity Price, which was revised in May 2023.

“Now it’s time to build a fairer pricing policy at Petrobras, put an end to PPI [preço de paridade de importação] and review the company’s indecent distribution of dividends so that it can invest again and make Brazil grow”, she said at the time, being supported by Minister Paulo Pimenta, from the Social Communication Secretariat of the Presidency of the Republic.

Other Petrobras results in 2023

In addition to net profit and the possibility of reducing dividends, Petrobras stated that it managed to reduce its financial debt by US$1.2 billion (R$5.9 billion), reaching a total of US$62.6 billion (R$ 309 billion), considered controlled by the company.

Total investments increased 29% compared to 2022, reaching US$12.7 billion (R$62.6 billion), in addition to the payment of R$240 billion in taxes to the Union and other states.

“This is the first year of a journey that will lead Petrobras to lead the fair energy transition in Brazil gradually and consciously. We will face the challenges by taking advantage of synergies with our businesses and leveraging our expertise, never neglecting the generation of economic value, as could be the case for a company that wants to remain competitive and perpetuate value for future generations”, he added. Prates.

Also according to the state-owned company, its total production in the pre-salt reached 2.17 million barrels of oil equivalent, 10% above that recorded in the previous year. As a result, the pre-salt already represents 78% of Petrobras’ total production.