Lula government expands political appointments at Petrobras under Magda

The government Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (PT) has increased political appointments at the top of Petrobras. The appointments sponsored by ministers and the top of the PT and FUP (Single Federation of Oil Workers), also linked to the party, began in the management of Jean Paul Prates in the statebut gained strength under the command of Magda Chambriard.

Since the PT member’s return to the Planalto Palace, at least 34 changes were made at key oil company posts by names more aligned with the government. This includes strategic management in the areas of exploration, engineering and energy transition and advisory committees to the Presidency and the Board of Directors.

The list of exchanges was published by the newspaper The State of S.Paulo and verified by Poder360. Of the names, 22 were appointed during the Prates era, including members of the Board of Directors and executive directors. Another 12 joined the Magda Chambriard administration since the end of May 2024, including the CEO herself, appointed by Lula and the minister Alexandre Silveira (Mines and Energy). The executive has a monthly salary of R$133.1 thousand.

The minister from Minas Gerais is the one with the most godchildren in the state-owned company: at least 16. In addition to Magda herself, at the beginning of the Lula government he placed 3 members on the state-owned company’s Board of Directors: Pietro Mendes (chairman of the board), Victor Saback and Renato Galuppo. The first two are secretaries of the MME and Galuppo has already worked on Silveira’s electoral campaigns as a lawyer. Each of them receives R$22,240 per month, in addition to other benefits.

Silveira also placed a series of well-known names in Minas Gerais in the state-owned company, such as Eugene Tiago Chagas (with a salary of R$41,441), who is the son-in-law of the former senator and former vice-governor of Minas Gerais Clesio Andrade; and Fabio Veras (salary of R$ 55,255), former president of the Technology and Innovation Council of Fiemg (Federation of Industries of Minas Gerais). Both are on the Audit Committee.

Another minister with nominations in the state-owned company is Rui Costa (Civil House). It has Bruno Morettisecretary of his ministry who is on the Board of Directors. And he recently placed the former Secretary of Legal Affairs of the Civil House, Wellington César Lima, in the Legal management of Petrobras.

With the fall of Prates after a public scolding by Rui and Silveira and the subsequent appointment of Magda, the political changes continued. The new CEO replaced 3 executive directors, each with a salary of R$126.8 thousand.

It also created a new management linked to it to run “structuring projects”. In practice, these are the state-owned company’s works that are part of the New PAC (Growth Acceleration Program). He appointed the company to the position Wagner Victerlinked to the PT in Rio. He served in the governments Anthony Little Boy and Sergio Cabral in Rio de Janeiro and worked with Magda at Alerj (Legislative Assembly of Rio de Janeiro).

Many of the appointments made by Magda Chambriard do not have a clear political godfather. There are Petrobras employees who have already held management positions in Grace Foster (2012-2015), as the director Renata Baruzzi (Engineering) and manager Mário Jorge da Silva (Strategy and Planning). Another recent appointee is Giles Azevedo, former Chief of Staff of Dilma Rousseff in the Presidency.

In addition to the government, the company that has gained the most strength within the state-owned company under the current administration is the FUP, a federation of oil workers’ unions that is affiliated with the CUT (Central Única dos Trabalhadores) and linked to the PT.

There are at least three names linked to the federation recently appointed to management positions at Petrobras: Rodrigo Leão, Eduardo Pinto and William Nozaki. The latter was the coordinator of the special advisory office of the BNDES (National Bank for Economic and Social Development) in management Aloizio Mercadante.

At the end of August, the FUP tried to disengage from its expansion within the state oil company. The union even published a note against an editorial in the S. Paulo Newspaperwhich said that state-owned companies – Petrobras is mentioned by name – serve as a hanger for government allies.

The list of political changes in the state-owned company tends to be even longer, since there is no transparency whatsoever in the appointments to 3rd and 4th tier positions, such as regional management and special advisory positions.

Investment banks have released reports warning of political manipulation in the state-owned company. Citi Bank stated that there is “yellow flag” in the company’s shares due to the turnover of executives at the top of management, with 35% of changes in August.

THE UBS BB said to see in the actions “a deterioration in governance” of the company. It particularly mentions the political appointments to the Audit Committee, which is responsible for assisting in monitoring and assessing risks related to matters involving government interests.

What Petrobras and the government say

The government, through the Ministry of Mines and Energy, reported that “Petrobras has its own governance and this department did not participate in any nomination or veto for board positions or in the management structure of the oil company”.

“Furthermore, it is not up to this ministry to appoint representatives to committees. All appointments and approvals for Petrobras committees are the sole and exclusive responsibility of the Board of Directors. It is worth noting that the members of the committees and boards were independently evaluated and underwent the BCI (Integrity Background Checking) and BCG (Management Background Checking), which assess whether the experience is in line with the Company’s regulations and the requirements established by legislation and the company’s bylaws.”says the MME note.

Also questioned about the exchanges promotedPetrobras did not respond until the publication of this text. The space remains open.

The FUP was also contacted by the reporter and has not yet responded. The space for demonstration is open.