Petrobras, the national oil corporation, is by far the most important player in the Brazilian fuel and gas sector, with a revenue of nearly 350 billion Brazilian reals in 2018 (roughly 96 billion U.S. dollars). Although legally the company hasn’t held a monopoly over the country’s oil industry since 1997, it remains largely unrivaled, particularly in the refining sector. For instance, Petrobras holds the largest market share in the fuel distribution segment, at nearly 30 percent. Nonetheless, in recent years Raízen (the official licensee of the Shell brand in Brazil) has been gradually conquering market share and in 2018, its annual net revenue exceeded 100 billion Brazilian reals.
Even though Brazil’s crude oil output has increased in recent years, its production of petroleum products has declined. In fact, Brazil produced only 94 million cubic meters of this type of fuels in 2018, the lowest value registered since 2010, with diesel fuel accounting for almost half of the total production volume. But overall, in 2018, sales of diesel fuel and commercial gasoline amounted to nearly 100 billion liters, combined.
In times of increasing global demand for renewable energy sources, Brazil also stands out as the second largest biofuel producer in the world, with a global production share of over 22 percent in 2018. Ethanol fuel, which in Brazil is mainly produced from sugar cane, accounts for most of the country’s biofuel output. Only in 2018, Brazil produced a whopping 33 million cubic meters of ethanol fuel, making it also the second largest producer in the world in this segment. The United States is the main market of destination for Brazilian ethanol fuel exports.
