{
  "id": 8261755,
  "title": "Petrobras vai ao Governo contra ANP para manter poder no mercado de gás",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/18/petrobras-vai-ao-governo-contra-anp-para-manter-poder-no-mercado-de",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-09-18T15:08:17.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Brazil Journal",
    "slug": "brazil-journal",
    "url": "https://braziljournal.com/petrobras-vai-ao-governo-contra-anp-para-manter-poder-no-mercado-de-gas/"
  },
  "original_language": "pt",
  "account": "Petrobras is lobbying various branches of the Lula government to block the ANP's agenda aimed at increasing competition in the natural gas market, which the agency promotes as a way to reduce concentration in the sector and lower prices for industry and consumers. The regulator has been discussing granting wider access to pipelines and gas processing units, revising tariff infrastructure (delayed for years), and the gas release program - compulsory auctions of volumes controlled mainly by dominant agents like Petrobras. The state-owned company's resistance to these measures, which could impact its margins, is expected and has been explicitly stated in public hearings on the proposals. The issue of concern to the ANP and the sector is the company's actions alongside the Planalto and ministries. \"Manifesting against is normal, the problem is asking for political intervention,\" a source close to the regulator told Brazil Journal. \"We are living in a moment of crisis in energy sector governance, it's a complicated path, one of disrespect to institutions. Not only in this case, but in others, it's Petrobras being behind everything.\" For now, the government has not reached out to the ANP to officially discuss Petrobras' positions, and the agenda for decentralization in the gas market is supported by the Minister of Mines and Energy, Alexandre Silveira, said a second source. \"The agency has its independence and regulatory agenda. We know Petrobras has complained, but will the government do something? It's unknown. So the ANP will follow its agenda. The issues are on the agenda, with dates.\" Last week, Petrobras CEO Magda Chambriard took her demands to a meeting at the Palace of the Planalto with ministers from the Civil House, Planning and Budget, Finance, and the Union's Attorney General. The Minister of Mines and Energy was absent. Silveira is \"isolated\" in these discussions, said one source. \"Traditionally, Petrobras always led the Ministry of Mines and Energy. That began to change under the Temer government. Now they want to regain control over the MME and the ANP.\" Decentralizing the market would obviously cause economic losses to the state, but the ANP's assessment is that it is not correct to keep the gas sector in a situation practically of \"monopoly without regulation.\" At a public meeting on the gas release in the ANP, the agency presented data showing that the state buys gas at the wellhead for US$ 3.80 per million BTU and resells it to distributors and consumers for US$ 12.40. The agency's technical area concluded that \"Petrobras remains dominant in the non-thermal gas mesh\" and that \"concentration levels remain high\" in the sector. The agency's technical team also pointed to \"high domination by the incumbent agent (Petrobras) in gas supply and trading\", and that current regulation is \"insufficient to generate effective competition\" and \"effective mechanisms for supply concentration.\" In practice, these market conditions generate an \"absurd margin\" for Petrobras, \"and who is financing us?\" said one source. A study by Cloviomar Cararine, an economist from Dieese, showed this week that Petrobras made a profit margin of 29.15% in the first half of 2022, surpassing Saudi Aramco (25.48%) for the first time.",
  "summary": "A Petrobras está pressionando diversas áreas do Governo Lula por medidas para barrar a agenda da ANP para aumentar a concorrência no mercado de gás natural – que a agência defende como forma de reduzir a concentração no setor e reduzir preços para a indústria e os consumidores. A reguladora tem discutido dar acesso mais […] The post Petrobras vai ao Governo contra ANP para manter poder no mercado…",
  "key_points": [
    "Petrobras lobbying government to block ANP's gas market reforms",
    "ANP advocating for wider pipeline access, tariff revisions, and gas release program",
    "Petrobras resists measures that could impact its margins and market dominance"
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}