Brazil’s Petrobras Gets Top Honors for Sustainability and Ethics

Brazil's state-controlled oil multinational Petrobras was considered the most sustainable oil company in the world by Spanish consultancy Management & Excellence (M&E). The company was in the first place in the ranking, with 92.25%. Last year, the organization received 89.64%, losing only to Shell (90.16%). This information was disclosed by the Petrobras Agency.

Considered a global reference in ethics and sustainability, Petrobras was evaluated in 387 international indices, among them the reduction of emission of pollutants, lower energy consumption and transparent customer supply service.

The company's growth with regard to the research last year was the greatest among the participants. According to the study, the company had the fastest progress among the main oil companies in the world in the last three years.

The criteria evaluated took into consideration compliancy with international standards stipulated by the International Labor Organization (ILO), the Global Pact by the United Nations (UN), the Millennium Development Goals (MDG), the company's presence in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index and presentation of the Social and Environmental Balance Sheet, according to guidance by the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI).

To contribute with social and environmental responsibility, last year Petrobras invested 1.7 billion Brazilian reais (US$ 1 billion) in the reduction of pollutant emissions, water and energy consumption management, the control of pollutant effluents released into the environment, and others, included in the company's environmental aspects.

In 2006, the investment had totaled 1.3 billion reais (US$ 770 million at current exchange rates for comparison purposes). The company target between 2007 and 2012 is to avoid the emission of 21.3 million tons of CO².

Petrobras operates in exploration, production, refining, trade and transport of oil and its derivatives in Brazil and abroad. The organization has over 100 production platforms, 16 refineries, 30,000 kilometers of pipelines and over 6,000 gasoline stations.

Spanish company M&E is specialized in the evaluation of companies, banks, investment funds, market analysis and consultancy, being one of the institutions most respected by the investor market and by the media in the United States, Europe and Latin America.

The research was performed using information collected from the companies themselves and from the press. In the oil and gas industry, the consultancy measures corporate governance, ethics, transparency, sustainability and social responsibility.

Anba