Petrobras’s Barbassa Says Cost ‘Overhang’ Hurt Quarterly Profit

By Jeb Blount
May 12 (Bloomberg) -- Petroleo Brasileiro SA Chief Financial Officer Almir Barbassa said the cost ‘overhang’ for oilfield equipment contracted when crude was higher, rising debt payments and falling oil prices led quarterly profit to slump.
Financial costs in the first quarter more than tripled to 849 million reais ($411 million) from 236 million reais a year earlier, after debt rose 9 percent to 70.3 billion reais, Barbassa told reporters in Rio de Janeiro late yesterday. Profit was also hurt by a 16 percent increase in operational costs to 10.2 billion reais and a drop in crude prices, he said.
Petrobras is seeking to trim costs for rigs, ships and other equipment needed to develop offshore fields after service providers took advantage of record oil prices last year to boost prices. The company’s debt is also increasing as Petrobras seeks to finance a five-year, $174.4 billion investment plan.
“We had more debt and thus higher interest cost,” Barbassa said. “Our operational costs are still being hurt by the overhang from last year.”
First-quarter consolidated net income declined to 5.82 billion reais, or 66 centavos a share, from 7.24 billion reais, or 83 centavos, a year earlier, the Rio de Janeiro-based company said yesterday. Three analysts surveyed by Bloomberg had forecast average profit of 5.71 billion reais.
Petrobras is seeking to bolster profit and cash generation after the average price of oil in the quarter fell 56 percent to $43.34 a barrel from $97.79 a year earlier. Declining profit comes as the company embarks on the world’s largest corporate investment plan. The $174.4 billion program requires the company to spend almost $100 million a day.