Petrobras signs $5bn financing deal with Chinese bank
Brazil’s troubled state oil company Petrobras, which holds huge offshore oilfield interests, on Thursday agreed a multibillion-dollar financing deal with a Chinese bank, according to Reuters.
Petrobras, the most indebted oil company in the world, signed the $5bn, 10-year financing agreement with China Development Bank Corporation, which is one of the three policy banks in the People’s Republic of China.
The bank is associated with raising funds for gigantic infrastructure projects in China.
Petrobras, which has been in a funk for two years because of a massive bribery scandal and the effects of the oil-price slump, also agreed an oil-supply deal with some Chinese companies. It will sell 100,000 barrels per day to China National United Oil Corp, China Zhenhua Oil Co and Chemchina Petrochemical Co.
Also on Thursday, Petrobras sold its minority stake in Nova Fronteira Bioenergia SA, a sugar and ethanol joint venture.
It is selling the 49% interest to its JV partner Sao Martinho SA, A Brazil-based sugar manufacturer.
Along with budget cuts, staff layoffs and reduced investments, Petrobras has been divesting assets as it tries to improve its balance sheet.
