Abu Dhabi’s state investment house Mubadala is among four companies chosen by Brazil’s state firm Petrobras to go through to a second round of bidding for four refineries. Mubadala is competing with China’s Sinopec, Brazilian fuels distributor Ultrapar and the Raizen joint venture of local biofuels producer Cosan and Anglo-Dutch major Shell, according to a 29 November Reuters report. The four refineries on offer have a combined capacity of 960,000 b/d, equivalent to 40% of Brazil’s total refining capacity. Petrobras is expecting binding offers for the plants by mid-January.

Mubadala Petroleum & Petrochemicals chief executive Musabbeh al-Kaabi told MEES recently that the fund’s strategy is to target “fit-for-future investments and commercially attractive projects that will help to meet the ever-increasing global energy demand” (MEES, 8 November). Recent key transactions include the sale of a 37% stake in Spanish downstream firm Cepsa to US investor Carlyle Group (MEES, 8 November) and paying $50mn for a 7% stake in NextDecade, which is developing the 27mn t/y Rio Grande LNG export facility in Brownsville, Texas (MEES, 25 October). (CONTINUED - 173 WORDS)