We have expanded the list of climate policies we assess company engagement with to incorporate land-use related policy, referring to legislative or regulatory measures to enhance and protect ecosystems and land where carbon is being stored. Assessments under this category are currently underweighted in terms of their contribution to the overall company metrics. This weighting will be progressively increased over the next 6 months.
We adjusted the terminology used to describe the queries running down the left-hand side of our scoring matrix and added additional explanatory text to the info-boxes. This has no impact on the scores and methodology. It has been done following user feedback to improve clarity.
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
The Executive Director of Exploration and Production of Petrobras, Fernando Borges, is the President of IBP (Up to date as of August 2022)
Fernando Borges
--no extract--
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
The Chief Institutional & Sustainability Officer of Petrobras, Roberto Ardenghy, is the President of the Instituto Brasileiro de Petróleo e Gás (up-to-date as of January 2022)
Roberto Ardenghy
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
The Executive Director of Exploration and Production of Petrobras, Fernando Borges, is the President of IBP (Up to date as of August 2022)
Fernando Borges
--no extract--
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
The Chief Institutional & Sustainability Officer of Petrobras, Roberto Ardenghy, is the President of the Instituto Brasileiro de Petróleo e Gás (up-to-date as of January 2022)
Roberto Ardenghy
In this section, we depict graphically the relationships the corporation has with trade associations, federations, advocacy groups and other third parties who may be acting on their behalf to influence climate change policy. Each of the columns above represents one relationship the corporation appears to have with such a third party. In these columns, the top, dark section represents the strength of the relationship the corporation has with the influencer. For example if a corporation's senior executive also held a key role in the trade association, we would deem this to be a strong relationship and it would be on the far left of the chart above, with the weaker ones to the right. Click on these grey shaded upper sections for details of these relationships. The middle section contains a link to the organization score details of the influencer concerned, so you can see the details of its climate change policy influence. Click on the middle sections for for details of the trade associations. The lower section contains the organization score of that influencer, the lower the more negatively it is influencing climate policy.
Open PDF file of Data Source
Climate Lobbying Overview: Petrobras appears to have broadly negative, albeit limited, engagement with climate-related messaging and regulations. Petrobras does not appear fully supportive of ambitious climate action in its top-line messaging, and the company appears to support a sustained role for fossil fuels in the energy mix
Top-line Messaging on Climate Policy: Petrobras’ top-line messaging on climate policy appears to be mixed. In its 2019 Climate Change Supplement, published in October 2019, the company recognized the need to globally tackle climate change and referenced the science of the IPCC. However, the supplement also highlighted energy poverty and the need to expand access to energy and to increase energy security, which indicates support for a less urgent response to climate change. In the same supplement, Petrobras also highlighted the need for action by public policymakers and companies to avoid risks of substantial future losses from climate change, and stated its support for the Paris Agreement. However, former Petrobras CEO, Roberto Castello Branco, described the commitments made by similar energy companies to be net-zero by 2050 as a “fad”, adding that “On this side of the Atlantic we have a different view of climate change,” as reported by World Oil in December 2020.
Engagement with Climate-Related Regulations: Petrobras does not appear to disclose its engagement with climate-related regulations on its corporate website and did not respond to the CDP questionnaire in 2020.
Positioning on Energy Transition: Petrobras does not appear supportive of the energy transition. In its 2019 Climate Change Supplement, Petrobras stressed the benefits and the need for fossil fuels, highlighting energy security and access to energy. In its 2020 Sustainability Report, published in July 2020, the company appeared to question the feasibility of the energy transition due to growth and economic barriers. A December 2020 article from the Financial Times suggests that Petrobras believes that oil demand will continue to provide short to medium term profit, with a spokesman denying the company is in an ‘identity crisis’. This position appears to be reaffirmed by former CEO, Branco, who reportedly stated to World Oil in December 2020:“I believe oil will be in demand for a long period of time. It is still the backbone of modern society”. Additionally, in a separate article in December 2020, Branco reportedly described efforts by European oil and gas companies to increase their share in renewables as a “fad”. Finally, in April 2020, it was reported by Jornal do Comércio that Branco had opposed calls for increased contributions by oil producers to the CIDE fuel tax in the context of the pandemic.
Industry Association Governance: Petrobras lacks a dedicated disclosure of its industry association links. Its 2020 Sustainability Report includes vague information about its policy regarding engagement with trade associations, without naming any associations it holds a membership with. However, InfluenceMap has been able to discover that Petrobras is a member of International Association of Oil and Gas Producers, which has traditionally lobbied for a long-term role of fossil fuels in the energy mix.
Additional Note: The Brazilian government owns 64% of Petrobras. It is likely that Petrobras retains channels of direct and private engagement with Brazilian officials that InfluenceMap is unable to assess. As this is not publicly available information, it is not reflected in Petrobras's engagement intensity metric.