Americas News
Petrobras: Q1 2015 Bunker, Fuel Oil Sales Fall 23%
State-run Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. (Petrobras) has reported that its fuel oil sales, including bunker fuel, have dropped 23 percent in the first quarter of 2015.
Fuel oil sales revenue dropped to $770 million from $1 billion the year before, while overall sales revenue fell to $26 billion from $34.5 billion.
Net income also fell to $1.6 billion from $2.4 billion.
Despite this, the company reportedly beat analyst expectations of $0.08 earnings per share (EPS) with an EPS of $0.14, though revenues came under expectations.
According to research by Zacks, the company benefited from a rise in diesel and gasoline prices during the quarter, but the increases did not offset the decline in oil and natural gas prices which had a negative impact on the bottom line.
The fall in crude prices has also resulted in lower export revenues, said Petrobras, while domestic oil product sales also declined 10 percent on seasonal consumption and lower economic activity.
Petrobras is also reportedly facing some scrutiny after including its results a $433 million contract completed after the reporting period with fellow state-run Eletrobras, which may force the company to republish its report for the quarter.
Last month, the company also experienced a brief shutdown of its bunkering operations at the Port of Santos after a fire broke out at a storage facility.
