On Monday, the Brazilian state oil company Petroleo Brasileiro SA said that the company has canceled most of its previously inaugurated production cuts due to the unexpectedly higher demand for some fuels.
Initially, in late March and early April, Petrobras targeted to cut production by 200,000 bpd to 2.07 million bpd and cutting utilization rates to 60%.
Now, the company increases oil production to 2.26 million bpd with 79% refinery utilization rates.
The company is confident that the demand for its products has proved to better than expected, but did not mention which fuels were in the highest demand this month.
Petrobras is now focusing on producing bunker fuel, as its products are naturally lower in sulfur contents, in line with the new international regulations on sulfur content for bunker fuels.
The company had said that the demand for bunker fuels has been more resilient during the coronavirus pandemic compared to other products including gasoline and jet fuels.
Petrobras said that it would still follow its guidance for 2020 oil production introduced in November.
In the first quarter of 2020, the company total production, including natural gas and petroleum products, was at 2.909 million boepd, down by 3.8% quarter-to-quarter but up by 14.6% year-on-year. Production of the bunker and other fuel oils climbed by 18.5% quarter-to-quarter and close to 50% year-on-year.
The data was supported by the coming online of several platforms but was also negatively affected by several planned stoppages.
