Petrobras’ social responsibility policy and programs were presented (May 7) at the Offshore Technology Conference (OTC), during the discussion session “Corporate Social Responsibility in Oil & Gas.” This discussion, which involved several other major oil companies, examined the positive impacts that the industry may generate for society.

“Having a discussion about social responsibility at the OTC demonstrates the topic’s growing importance for the oil and gas sector. It’s a great opportunity to present Petrobras’ vision and show what we are doing, especially in this edition, in which we won an award for our pre-salt production technologies,” said the company’s executive manager for social responsibility, Armando Tripodi. The innovations developed by the company and recognized at the OTC include a carbon dioxide re-injection technique that has prevented emissions of 1 million tons of CO2.

Petrobras’ Social Responsibility Guidance and Practices Consultant, Ana Paula Grether, who represented the company in the discussion session, talked about policy, challenges and drivers in the area. “Petrobras’ programs seek to combine business expansion with sustainable development,” she said, explaining that integrating social responsibility aspects into its investment projects involves two dimensions: human rights and local development.

The company’s social investment initiatives, which are part of the Petrobras Social and Environmental Program, support civil society projects in seven areas of activity, chosen through public contests. Since 2007, 14 million people have directly or indirectly participated more than 25 million times in the program, which has generated more than 20,000 jobs, Grether said. In the environmental dimension, the program has conserved or restored more than 935,000 hectares of wildlife habitat (equivalent to seven times the size of the city of Rio de Janeiro) and helped to preserve 700 species of fauna, including four that are no longer endangered.

In the community relations area, Petrobras Agenda 21 – a participatory planning process through which communities think about their future on a sustainable basis – has played a prominent role. This initiative promotes the construction of systematic, continuous dialogue with communities in the company’s areas of influence. The program has so far had around 66,000 direct participants and 163,000 indirect participants, covering 86 Brazilian municipalities in the areas of influence of Petrobras’ 30 operational sites. Grether also emphasized that Petrobras’ Sustainability Report, as well as being a mechanism for disclosing its facts and figures, including 150 indicators, is a tool for measuring results, in line with the international benchmark parameters of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI).

Grether noted that the aim of the social responsibility programs is to make a positive contribution to the communities where Petrobras operates. “We have worked intensively to continue to improve our social performance, integrating evaluations of social impacts into our operations and supporting social and environmental initiatives.”

The discussion session’s participants stressed that social responsibility policies help to enhance the social function of companies and make their businesses more sustainable. Executives from Shell, Exxon, Total and Sonangol also took part in the discussion.