Clarification on News: Theft of fuel and equipment on the Amazon

Rio de Janeiro, July 26, 2017 - Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. - Petrobras reports that it received on 7/25/2017, Official Letter No. 257/2017/CVM/SEP/GEA-1, which requests the following clarification:

Official Letter No. 257/2017/CVM/SEP/GEA-1

'Dear Executive Officer,

We refer herein to the news published on this date in the newspaper O Estado de São Paulo, section Metrópole, under the headline: 'Piratas atacam refinaria da Petrobrás' ['Pirates attack Petrobras refinery'] which includes the following statements:

'Thugs invade units of the state-owned enterprise in the Amazon and steal, beyond fuel, drilling and exploration equipment

Karla Mendes SPECIAL FOR O ESTADO PORTO VELHO AND RIO DE JANEIRO

The ' treasure hunt ' by pirates for fuel in the Amazon arrived to refineries and distribution terminals of Petrobras and other companies that operate in the region. The modus operandi of these attacks is the same as in attacks to vessels on rivers: the pirates use small, fast boats to the arrive at the site and, with heavy weapons, overpower the guards. Next, a larger boat comes in where the stolen fuel equipment is transported.

One of the targets of the attacks is the Petrobras Refinery in Manaus (Reman), a gasoline and diesel oil production unit that supplies the Amazon region. 'The [pirates'] scheme is advanced. There is direct theft at the Manaus Refinery,' a source connected to security on the Amazon revealed to Estado.

The robberies occur mainly at the time of floods, when the high level of rivers facilitates the access of criminals to the refinery. They use one-inch hose connections to pump fuel from pipelines directly to the tanks of vessels used for theft, which always occurs in the dead of night, in a dimly lit area, according to the Amazonas State Oil Tankers Union.

'The danger exists and is imminent. We've filed several reports, which are being investigated by the refinery management,' says Roberto Pinheiro, Director of Sindipetro-AM. 'This has been happening for about 20 years, but it has intensified in recent years. Recently, there have been two or three attacks in a row.'

[...]

Losses. As published by Estado, the Solimões River stretch between the towns of Coari and Tefé, in Amazonas, is dominated by pirates and it is the most violent stretch among the Amazon rivers, because of drug shipments coming from Colombia and Peru.

FNP said to have reported the problems to Petrobras on the negotiating table, and blames the pirate attacks to the drastic reduction in the number of state-owned enterprise employees since 2014, particularly in terminal operations and metering of fuel tanks.

The National Union of Fuel and Lubricant Distribution Companies estimates that more than 10 billion liters of fuel were stolen in the Amazon in 2016, the highest volume of which occurred in rafts. In the first quarter of this year, the stolen volume was 2.4 billion. Pirate robberies in the Amazon cause losses of about R$ 100 million per year in goods, according to the National Federation of Waterway Navigation Companies (Fenavega).

When sought by Estado, Petrobras did not comment. A source linked to the company, however, has confirmed an attempted robbery on Reman. According to the source connected to Amazon security, there are also reports of pirate attacks in the area of operation of the Russian oil company Rosneft. Rosneft denied the occurrence of crimes through its press office.'

From the above, we request you clarify whether the news is true and report which measures are being taken by the issuer on the subject herein, as well as comment on other information you consider to be important on the subject.'

Clarifications:

Petrobras reports that there is no record of assaults, attacks or occurrences involving heavy weapons and surrender of guards at Petrobras refineries and terminals in the Amazon region.

Regarding attacks on vessels for cargo theft, including fuel, as mentioned in the report, it is worth mentioning that these crimes have been common in the Amazon rivers for decades. However, such cases rarely involve Petrobras assets and, when they do occur, are properly reported and addressed by the competent authorities.

This year, there have been two reports of fuel theft attempt at Isaac Sabbá Refinery (Reman). The Civil Police was notified and a police report was filed. Internal investigations have detected no leaks or any type of damage to the environment. Petrobras has increased surveillance and coordination with public safety authorities and maintains permanent cooperation with other agencies in charge, to assist in combating any criminal activity in an integrated manner.

Petrobras further clarifies that the information disclosed in the article in connection to the losses resulting from such crimes is unfounded. In 2016, gasoline and diesel sale in the Northern region was about 6.5 billion liters, according to data by the National Agency of Petroleum, Natural Gas and Biofuels (ANP). Therefore, the estimated loss of 10 billion liters per year is inconsistent, as it would represent 1.5 times the volume of fuel sold in the region, or 370% of Reman's annual production.