By Brazil Stock Guide – Brazil’s development bank BNDES is actively working with creditors and shareholders to help find a resolution for Raízen’s ongoing financial restructuring, President Aloizio Mercadante said Tuesday (17).
Raízen (RAIZ4 BZ), a joint venture between Shell Plc (SHEL LN) and Cosan SA (CSAN3 BZ), has entered an extrajudicial restructuring process as it seeks to rebalance its finances while maintaining operations in the biofuels and fuel distribution sectors.
Mercadante said the bank is engaged in discussions despite not being formally part of the restructuring. He emphasized confidence in the company’s recovery prospects, citing the strength of its assets and its strategic role in Brazil’s energy matrix.
“We have every interest in the company’s recovery because it has very solid results, very important assets, and a major role in the biofuels sector. We believe this recovery is possible and we are working in that direction, even though we are not part of the extrajudicial restructuring […] As a publicly traded company, we do not comment on the future because it does not help. We are helping to find a good solution for the company,” Mercadante said.
The BNDES chief declined to detail specific support measures but signaled that future financing could be considered. He noted the bank remains outside the restructuring because its credit exposure is backed by real guarantees.
“The BNDES is not part of the extrajudicial restructuring because our credits have real guarantees. All the others [involved parties] are. Being a public development bank obviously facilitates this possibility, but if you look, in Americanas we had financing and the BNDES was fully repaid. The same happened with Oi and Light. That is why we have such low default rates,” he said.
Mercadante also highlighted Cosan’s portfolio strength, pointing to assets such as Compass, Moove, and its stake in Rumo SA (RAIL3 BZ), alongside Raízen itself, which he described as the world’s largest producer of sugar and ethanol.
When asked about potential shifts in Brazil’s fuel distribution market, Mercadante indicated that any move involving Raízen’s assets would depend on Petrobras (PETR4 BZ). The state-controlled oil company is currently restricted from re-entering fuel distribution until 2029 due to a non-compete agreement with Vibra Energia SA (VBBR3 BZ).
“The Cosan group has very strategic assets, such as the largest gas distributor, assets that are important to Petrobras and continue to be important for gas distribution. There is also the Shell-branded network of gas stations, with 8,000 locations. These assets may be of interest to Petrobras, but that is an assessment Petrobras will make, not the BNDES,” he said.
He added that while there are potential synergies between Cosan’s portfolio and Petrobras, any decision would depend on the company’s investment strategy and appetite for acquisitions.
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