Petrobras considers divestment of stake in Braskem for $903m

Brazil’s state-run oil company Petrobras is believed to be selling its stake in petrochemicals firm Braskem, for about $903m, amidst a massive corruption scandal and drop in oil prices.

Citing a report in Broadcast, the real-time news service of newspaper Estado de S. Paulo, Reuters said that the names of potential buyers were undisclosed.

Meanwhile, Petrobras’ shares have jumped nearly 4% on Monday on reports of the company’s plan to sell its stake in the petrochemical company.

The move is a part of the company’s plan to divest approximately $13.7bn worth in assets in two years in order to reduce its debt and strengthen its balance sheet.

Petrobras plans to sell assets in exploration and production (30%), downstream (30%) and gas and energy (40%) segments.

The divestment plan increases the targets from $5 – 11bn allocated in the 2014-2018 Business & Management Plan, released in February 2014.

The divestments will be based on market conditions and negotiations, the company said in a filing to response to the Broadcast report.

Petrobras manages and holds 36.1% stake in Braskem while Odebrecht owns 38.3% stake in the petrochemical firm.

Earlier this year, Petrobras’ chief executive officer Maria das Graças Foster and five other senior executives stepped down following a corruption scandal in which officials, contractors and politicians were involved.

Considered to be one of the largest oil businesses in the world, Petrobras has operations in Asia, Africa and the Middle East.