Petrobras to Raise $1.4 Billion Selling Argentina, Chile Assets

Bloomberg

Petrobras has agreed to sell assets in Argentina and Chile for about $1.4 billion as Brazil’s state-controlled oil producer looks to raise cash and focus on deep-water projects in Brazil.

The Rio de Janeiro-based producer has completed negotiations to sell its 67.2 percent stake in Petrobras Argentina SA to Pampa Energia SA for $892 million, it said Tuesday in a regulatory filing. It also agreed to sell Petrobras Chile Distribucion Ltda. to Southern Cross Group, a private equity company, for about $490 million, it said in a separate filing.

Petroleo Brasileiro SA, as it’s formally known, will keep a 34 percent stake in the Rio Neuquen natural gas concession in Argentina and full ownership of the Colpa Caranda natural gas fields in Bolivia that belonged to its Argentina unit. The Chilean distribution company has assets including 279 filling stations and eight fuel terminals. Both sales are pending approval from Petrobras’s board and regulators.