Brazil Keeps Refit Refinery Shut as 24/7 Task Force Safeguards Fuel Supply

Overview

• ANP’s precautionary interdiction of Refit remains in force after inspectors reported no clear evidence of crude processing, suspected irregular fuel imports and unauthorized tank use.
• Federal actions under Operation Cadeia de Carbono seized two shiploads totaling 91 million liters of diesel bound for Refit, with extensive sampling underway for forensic analysis.
• Industry groups led by the IBP activated a round‑the‑clock contingency that raises Petrobras’s Reduc output and adds roughly 200 trucks per day from São Paulo to maintain supply in Rio and beyond.
• Regulators tightened controls on nafta by requiring a certificate of analysis for every import request filed since Friday to curb possible fuel formulation abuses.
• Refit rejects allegations and is filing a confidential appeal in Rio’s courts to block the operation’s effects, as ICL data show the company’s market share surged in Rio and São Paulo and reports cite large outstanding ICMS debts.