Brazil’s Petrobras plans to invest a total US$105 billion in the five years to 2023 and divest assets worth US$35 billion, chief executive Roberto Castello Branco said this week as quoted by Reuters. Before Branco took the helm, the five-year investment program stood at US$84.1 billion and divestments were planned at US$26.9 billion. The news comes on the heels of a deal Petrobras struck with the Brazilian antitrust regulator that will allow it to sell several downstream assets in a bid, the company said, to encourage greater competition in the industry. The assets up for sale include eight refineries in seven states. Last week, the company also cleared a major obstacle to further divestments when the Supreme Court of Brazil ruled that Petrobras could sell its subsidiaries without having to first obtain approval from Congress. This last piece of news is welcomed by the new Brazilian government, which has […]