The renewable energy segment will have investments of nearly US$ 3 billion in the period 2009-2013
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INCREASED DEMAND LINKED TO ENVIRONMENT COMMITMENT
The growing demand for petroleum and fuels, associated with further requirements in relation to the quality of the products can cause an increase in energy consumption in operational processes, and the ensuing increase in greenhouse gas emissions.
| Total greenhouse gas emissions (1) (in millions of tons of Co2 equivalente) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Direct emissions (2) | Indirect emissions | Total emissions (3) |
| 2006 | 49,86 | 0,57 | 50,43 |
| 2007 | 49,52 | 0,35 | 49,88 |
| 2008 | 57,47 | 0,69 | 58,16 |
- 1) To calculate the mass of CO2 equivalent, one uses the formula (CO2 + 21*Ch4 + 310*N2O)
- 2) The value of direct emissions of 2007 was revised to reflect improvements in the calculation protocol. There is a difference of 0.11 millions tons of CO2 equivalent related to the value published in the Social and Environmental Report 2007.
- 3) The direct emissions include the estimates of the atmospheric emissions of the units installed in Brazil and in other countries, ships of the Petrobras fleet and the contracted fleet that travel internationally. The indirect emissions refer to activities of purchasing electricity and vapor in Brazil. Other indirect emissions, as defined in GHG protocol, are not within the scope of the inventory, and so their values are not recorded.
Upon establishing goals to avoid the emission of 2.3 and 4.5 million tons of CO2 equivalent in its productive processes in 2009 and 2013, respectively, Petrobras seeks to balance the requirement to supply the energy for the development of Brazil aligned with its commitments to improve the environmental performance of its processes and products.
Some of the main initiatives of Petrobras to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in its operations are the actions for streamlining the use of fossil fuels and increase its market share of biofuels, among other renewable energies. Investment in the biofuel segment alone for the period 2009-2013 will be US$ 2.8 billion.
Petrobras has participated since the 1970’s in the Brazilian National Alcohol Program (Proálcool) in the different stages of the industrial production of ethanol. The Internal Energy Conservation Program saved 1.1 gigawatts in the demand for electricity and about 2,500 barrels of oil equivalent per day.
Another program for Optimizing Gas Use is designed to reduce burning and the release of natural gas into the atmosphere on 24 production platforms.
In 2008, Petrobras emitted nearly 58.16 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent.
The company complies with Brazilian legislation (Federal Decree # 2783, September 1998), which forbids state-owned companies to procure plant or products containing or using substances that destroy the ozone layer. This is why Petrobras does not include in its processes and activities an inventory of pollutants stated in the Montreal Protocol, an international treaty that regulates the progressive discontinuation of the use of such substances.
EFFLUENTS AND WASTE
During the year 181.14 million m3 of water effluents from company operations were discharged, including sewage generated by the administrative and operational units and the disposal of water from the petroleum extraction process.
In accordance with legal and internal criteria, the oil and grease load in the effluents from all Petrobras facilities in 2008 was limited to 1,258 tons. In the downstream area, the load of chemical oxygen demand (COD) in the effluents was 6,282 tons, while the ammoniacal nitrogen load was limited to 1,269 tons.
| Past series of splits(1) (M3) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 |
| 530 | 269 | 293 | 386 | 436 |
- 1) Counting spills of more than one barrel (0.159 m3) affecting the environment.
All company operational units have effluent treatment systems, constantly upgraded by new technologies, management practices or legal restrictions.
The productive processes generated 233,425 tons of hazardous solid waste during the year. The company prioritizes initiatives that are designed to reduce the waste generation at source, and invests in the development of groundbreaking technologies for treatment and reuse of such materials. These technologies include non-destructive thermal plasma and the heat treatment of multiphase materials and waste and bioreactor treatment of soils, etc.
In 2008, 30% of the hazardous waste generated went to recycling operations and/or reuse as an alternative fuel; 19% to industrial landfills; 14% to biological treatment; 13% to incineration and 24% to other technologies. No waste disposal was made in underground reservoirs.
Petrobras did not undertake international waste transportation nor import or export waste considered to be hazardous, in conformity with the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movement of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal.
In 2008, the company recorded 79 occurrences of byproduct and oil spills, with an accumulated volume of 436 m3. In spite of the increase compared with the previous year, the total volume was well below the maximum limit allowed of 694 m3 established for the year. The result keeps Petrobras at a level compatible with the excellence benchmarks of the international oil and gas industry.