Petrobras has launched its first call for proposals for the acquisition of biomethane yesterday. The initiative is aligned with the company's objectives of decarbonizing its operations and operating with a robust and competitive portfolio of gas offerings with products with a lower carbon footprint.

The initiative foresees the receipt of offers for firm contracts with deliveries starting in 2026, contractual terms of up to 11 years, and receipt at different delivery points, such as refineries, thermoelectric plants, in the transportation network and in the distribution network.

The process also seeks to survey the commercial conditions offered by the market based on the decarbonization mandate created by Law 14.993/2024, known as the Fuel of the Future Law.

“Within the concepts of the Fair Energy Transition, if the company receives positive signals from producers regarding the competitiveness and supply conditions of this input, Petrobras can acquire volumes 3 to 4 times greater than the country's average daily production of biomethane, which is around 220 thousand m³/day, according to public records from the ANP”, explains Petrobras' director of Energy Transition and Sustainability, Maurício Tolmasquim.

The process encourages the development of the entire ecosystem related to biomethane in various parts of the country.

The first stage of the call will be non-binding and will require the submission of commercial proposals, accompanied by information such as the origin of the biomethane, the means of transport, any seasonality of production and the expected schedule, in the case of projects that are not yet operational. The next stage, scheduled to begin in May 2025, will involve commercial negotiations for the acquisition of biomethane. The input must be accompanied by the certificate of guarantee of origin and meet the ANP's quality requirements and standards. Proposals for the purchase of certificates of guarantee of origin will also be accepted, which enables the participation of small-scale producers or those located in locations where there is no logistical possibility for delivery to points accepted by Petrobras.

Biomethane comes from the biogas purification process, produced from raw materials of organic origin, and consists essentially of methane. The product is specified according to ANP standards and has characteristics that make it interchangeable with natural gas of fossil origin in its various applications, and can be used to generate renewable energy, as an input in the decarbonization of industry, in the production of low-carbon hydrogen, as well as in biorefining processes and fertilizer production.