Petrobras to buy five LPG tankers, multiple vessels for $521 million

Petrobras and its logistics subsidiary Transpetro have signed contracts with shipyards for five liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) tankers, 18 barges and 18 pushboats (push tugs/towboats), for 2.8 billion reais (approx. $521 million), according to Reuters and several online reports.

The companies made the deal official at an event in Brazil’s southern Rio Grande do Sul state. Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who has prioritized boosting the country's shipbuilding sector, attended the ceremony.

The new fleet will be operated by Transpetro and is being built as part of Petrobras’ “Open Sea” (“Mar Aberto”) program. This initiative is aimed at the renewal and expansion of its LPG fleet in order to reduce dependence on charters and provide greater flexibility and efficiency in its logistics operations.

The Rio Grande Shipyard in Rio Grande do Sul state will build the five tankers, representing 2.2 billion reais of the deal (about $410 million). These tankers will carry liquefied petroleum gas, known as cooking gas, and derivatives, according to a statement from Petrobras.

Two of the tankers will have a capacity of 14,000 cubic meters, while the other three will be able to transport 7,000 cubic meters each, it said.

The first gas tanker will be delivered within 33 months after construction begins, with new deliveries every six months, the Petrobras statement added.

Shipyards in two other Brazilian states will build the remaining barges and pushers, and Transpetro will operate all ships.

“With these contracts, we are preparing Petrobras for the growth of our production in the coming years and boosting the recovery of the national shipbuilding industry,” Petrobras Chief Executive Officer Magda Chambriard said in the statement.