MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Argentina's YPF sells lubricants subsidiary in Brazil

YPF's brands in Brazil will remain under the new owner

Argentina's State-owned oil company YPF agreed this week to sell its stake in its Brazilian lubricants subsidiary to the local Usiquimica to achieve “greater focus and profitability” in its operations, it was reported in Buenos Aires. The buyer has been producing and trading chemical products for 80 years.

YPF also said in a statement that the move was envisioned within the so-called “4x4 Plan” launched earlier this year to review the company's active management. Established in 1998,

YPF Brazil has had a lubricants plant since 2015 with a production capacity of 48,000 cubic meters per year and a domestic market share of nearly 2%.

The new sales agreement includes the terms and conditions for a license agreement for the use of YPF's lubricant brands. Hence, the Argentine company's products in Brazil are there to stay, it was also explained. “This decision is part of the ongoing process of reviewing the portfolio, with the aim of achieving greater focus and profitability,” the communiqué also mentioned.

On the other hand, YPF's Board of Directors created a new Vice-Presidency to focus on developing a strategic plan for the next decade to strengthen “its position in the field of new energies,” due to which YPF Luz, Mega, and Profertil will play a fundamental role in the future energy transition.

This decision reaffirms YPF's “commitment to the optimization of its business structure and the generation of sustainable value in the context of constant transformation of the energy sector,” the document also pointed out.