Brazil President slams Petrobras dividend payouts and demands investment

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has criticised the size of dividends that Petrobras is dishing out to its shareholders — one day after the state-controlled oil company announced a record annual profit — and warned its pricing policy may have to change.

Petrobras will pay another 35.8 billion reais ($6.9 billion) in dividends for the fourth quarter of 2022 and a total sum of 215.7 billion reais for the year, more than twice the amount disbursed in 2021.

In a speech on Thursday, Lula criticised the dividend payments and said more of the company’s income should be reinvested.