BRASILIA: Brazil’s national oil company, Petrobras, closed a deal on Tuesday to sell US$2.225 billion worth of assets to French giant Total as part of its continuing diversification plan. According to a Petrobras statement, the deal is part of a broad alliance to work on upstream and downstream. It sees Petrobras transfer to Total 22.5 percent of concession rights to the Iara exploration area, including the Sururu, Berbigao and Oeste de Atapu oil fields. It also transfers 35 percent of the Lapa field concession area, which began production in December. Petrobras is not exiting the two fields fully as it shall retain a majority interest of 42.5 percent in Iara and 10 percent in Lapa. Finally, Petrobras has sold to Total a 50 percent stage in Termobahia, a power generation company with two thermal plants in the northeastern state of Bahia. The beleaguered Brazilian oil company is facing a major need to cut costs as it faces crippling debt and a loss of market confidence after a corruption ring was found within its ranks. In 2016, Petrobras announced a divestment plan, which included raising US$19.5 billion through the offloading of assets in 2017 and 2018.–BERNAMA
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