Brazilian Senator Jean Paul Prates is advancing in his quest to become Petrobras’s next chief executive officer at a time investors are concerned about growing political interference in the oil giant.
(Bloomberg) — Brazilian Senator Jean Paul Prates is advancing in his quest to become Petrobras’s next chief executive officer at a time investors are concerned about growing political interference in the oil giant.
On Tuesday the government officially appointed Prates to Petrobras’s board of directors, a necessary step to taking over as CEO. Then on Wednesday Caio Mario Paes de Andrade formally resigned from the post to take a job with Sao Paulo state’s new government.
Andrade’s resignation allows the company’s current board, where a majority of members were appointed by ex-President Jair Bolsonaro administration, to choose a CEO without holding a shareholders meeting. The only step required is for Prates to be cleared by internal Petrobras committees, which could take weeks. Chief Production Development Officer Joao Henrique Rittershaussen will serve as interim CEO in the meantime, according to a filing.
The government is also expected to name new representatives to the board of directors, which will then have to be approved at a shareholders meeting. Itau expects changes to the board to be completed by the end of February.
Under President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Petroleo Brasileiro SA is poised to reverse years of investor-friendly cost cuts and boost spending on refining and renewable energy, and share prices are down about 9% this week following his inauguration.
Read more: Petrobras investors balk as Lula makes a populist strategy shift
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