officially Petróleo Brasileiro SA
Brazilian oil and natural-gas company, the largest corporation in South America.
It was founded in 1953 as a government-owned monopoly to prospect, extract, and refine domestic petroleum and to transport that oil and its derivatives. A government agency sets its policies and oversees its development. Although mainly devoted to developing petroleum sources in Brazil, Petrobrás also has interests in the Middle East, North Africa, and Colombia. In 1995, as part of a campaign to privatize state-owned industries, the Brazilian government ended the company's monopoly and allowed foreign competition. Petrobrás subsequently developed joint ventures with foreign businesses.