Diesel imports by Brazil soar 23.9% in the 1st quarter

Diesel imports by Brazil increased 23.9% in the first four months of the year, to 4.7 billion liters, according to data from the ANP regulatory agency released on Monday (30), while fuel sales by distributors in the country advanced only 2% in the same period.

In April, the country imported 1.557 billion liters of diesel, an increase of 30.6% compared to March and 11% compared to the same month last year.

April’s import volume is the highest since October 2021 (1.85 billion litres), as Brazil seeks to secure supplies in a tight overseas market amid the impacts of the war in Ukraine.

Already diesel sales by distributors in Brazil increased 2.1% in the four-month period, to 19.9 billion liters, while they fell in April for the first time in the year compared to the previous month.

The volumes in April of the most traded fuel in the country totaled 4.96 billion liters, a slight decrease compared to the same month last year, but a decline of 470 million liters compared to March.

gasoline and ethanol

Gasoline imports also increased by around 30% in the four-month period, to 807.9 million litres. In comparison with April of last year, there was an increase of 54.6%, with fossil fuel gaining market share of hydrous ethanol.

C gasoline sales increased 14.1% in the four-month period to 13.13 billion liters, with monthly volumes exceeding 3.2 billion liters per month since January.

Sales of hydrous ethanol, which competes with gasoline, dropped 21.9% in the four-month period, to approximately 5 billion liters, totaling 1.37 billion liters in April, an annual drop of 10%.

The import of anhydrous ethanol (mixed in gasoline) fell by 33.8% in the four-month period, to 130.3 million liters, while in the open market they totaled only 4 million liters, a decline of almost 80% in the annual comparison.