ANDhe government of Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is going to “renew” the board of directors of Petrobrasamid criticism of the Executive's interventionism in public companies, a senior official announced this Tuesday.
“It is time to renew the board of directors of Petrobras,” the chief of staff, Rui Costa, told the Globonews channel.
The open capital state oil company, controlled by the Brazilian State but with private shareholdersfell on the stock market after the board's decision not to distribute extraordinary dividends.
Its shares lost more than 10% on Friday and around 2% on Monday on the Sao Paulo Stock Exchange, before rebounding this Tuesday.
“If I only attended to the 'crying' of the market, I wouldn't do anything because the market is a rhinoceros, a voracious dinosaur; it wants to have everything for itself and nothing for the people
Government members defended the decision of the board of directors, but have tried to calm investors by clarifying that the resources that will be placed in reserve (about 43 billion reais, almost 9 billion dollars) can be distributed as dividends in the future.
“The distribution of extraordinary dividends will be made as it becomes clear to the board that this will not compromise the company's investment plan,” explained the Minister of Finance, Fernando Haddad, on Monday night, after attending a meeting with Lula and the president of Petrobras, Jean Paul Prates, in Brasilia.
Amid market reaction, the president of the senateRodrigo Pacheco, stated on Monday that the government “must understand its limits” and not compromise “the independence” of the companies in which it is a shareholder.
The Chief of Staff indicated for his part that the 11 advisors of the oil company, as well as others from various state companies, will be replaced to “oxygenate” those decision-making structures.
The official clarified that the measure will not be immediate.
Lula, who returned to power in 2023 after two governments (2003-2010), has repeatedly criticized Petrobras' earnings management, which he considers favorable to shareholders to the detriment of Brazilian society.
“If I only attended to the 'crying' of the market, I wouldn't do anything because the market is a rhinoceros, a voracious dinosaur; it wants to have everything for itself and nothing for the people,” the leftist president told the SBT channel on Monday night.
Costa noted that the president is “satisfied” with the results of Petrobras and ruled out a departure for Prates, appointed by Lula last year.
Criticism of intervention also looms over the Vale mining company, where the State has less than 10%.
In a letter announcing his resignation, and published in the press, a member of the company's board of directors, José Penido, denounced a “disastrous political influence” in the election of the new executive director, an accusation refuted by Vale which indicated that the process operates “in accordance” with its rules.
In February, Lula criticized Vale's business decisions and its response to the collapse of a mining dam in January 2019 in Brumadinho (southeast), and said that the company “has to be accountable to Brazil.”
AFP
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