Oil and gas output climbed 12% on year to 3.51 million barrels of oil equivalent a day, Petroleo Brasileiro SA, as the company is formally known, said in a filing on Wednesday. Production rose 5.3% compared to the second quarter as Petrobras ramped up new platforms at deep-water fields, including the P-78 and P-79 units at the giant Buzios project. 

The floating production and storage vessel Alexandre de Gusmao reached peak production at the Mero field, and there were fewer losses from maintenance shutdowns, Petrobras said.

The growth in production and refining has helped Latin America’s largest economy limit its exposure to the global energy shock. Petrobras ran its refineries at 99% of capacity during the quarter, reaching record diesel production. 

Oil production of 2.8 million barrels a day in the quarter puts Petrobras above its implied 2026 guidance and gives the company a higher starting point for 2027, according to Ativa Investimentos analyst Ilan Arbetman, who had flagged the potential in a note ahead of the report.

Brazil has used subsidies and tax cuts to cushion consumers from soaring fuel costs, while Petrobras has kept its refineries running at high rates to supply the domestic market.

But with Brent trading above US$110 a barrel and Petrobras fuel prices lagging international benchmarks, pressure is building on the company to raise prices. On Wednesday, Petrobras’s average diesel price at the refinery gate was 3.76 reais (US$0.70) a litre below import parity, a gap of 115%, according to fuel importers association Abicom. Gasoline was 24% below international levels, according to the group.

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