While Petrobras is drilling deeper than ever before beneath the seabed in its quest for nature’s wealth, above ground Brazil’s national oil company is seeking to tap further into international markets as it seeks to finance its ambitious capital expenditure plans.
The group plans to raise $30bn to $40bn by 2014. Only two weeks ago, it completed a $6bn bond offering that was Brazil’s biggest such deal. The size of the fundraising plan has left analysts wondering whether Petrobras can continue to meet its target of net debt to equity of below 35 per cent (the ratio is currently 18 per cent) without issuing new shares in the coming years.
