Brazilian state-owned oil company Petrobras has set a record by exporting 1 million barrel of oil per day in April as domestic demand plunged, according to reports in the media.
During the first four months of 2020, around 60 percent of Petrobras’ exports went to China.
Since Brazil isn’t a part of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) group, Petrobras has not pledged any supply cuts to stabilize the market.
In a statement, Chief Refining and Gas Natural Officer, Anelise Lara, said that the oil behemoth is following the international situation closely and is assessing all markets.
Previously, Petrobras set its oil export record in December 2019, when it exported 771,000 barrels of oil per day.
In a statement, the company said, “The company continues monitoring the market and, if necessary, will make new adjustments always ensuring safety conditions for people, operations and processes.”
Recently, Petrobras revealed that the coronavirus pandemic has impacted its natural gas sales in the first quarter of 2020. The company reported a 4 percent decline in its natural gas sales during the first three months of this year to reach 72 million cubic meters per day (Mmcm/d).
Petrobras may soon become the world’s largest oil producer among publicly listed companies by 2030, according to a report published by Rystad Energy last year.
Rystad Energy said in a statement that currently, Russia’s Rosneft and PetroChina top the list of the world’s largest public exploration and production companies. However, based on Rystad Energy’s latest forecasts, Petrobras could overtake PetroChina over the next few months and potentially dethrone Rosneft over the next decade.