Irresponsible political appointments in the management of Petroperú generate rejection and concern

The following is a machine translation of a release from the National Confederation of Private Business Institutions

Last week, Petroperú's General Shareholders' Meeting appointed Alejandro Narváez as Chairman of the Board, an appointment that has been questioned due to his predominantly political rather than technical profile.

Narváez has stated that the company is not going through a crisis, despite the fact that Petroperú has required injections of billions of soles from the State to avoid its insolvency, thus acting irresponsibly with the treasury.

Narváez's appointment has sparked a negative response, to the point that two of the newly appointed directors have resigned, generating greater uncertainty about the composition of Petroperú's Board of Directors. This situation has been aggravated by the recent appointment of Óscar Vera as General Manager.

With these decisions, the Government seems to be leaning towards citizens continuing to finance Petroperú with their taxes and contributions, leaving aside the option of renegotiating with financial creditors, who demand a professional, independent administration with clear rules of governance.

These political, ideological and irresponsible appointments reinforce the position that the Executive is against a restructuring of Petroperú. None of the aforementioned appointments meet the professional profile to design and implement a financial, commercial and operational strategy that the company requires.

This situation sends an unfavorable message to financial agents, markets and, above all, to citizens, who would see their need to close gaps in priority sectors compromised, while the company reports losses of US$745 million in the third quarter of 2024.

We respectfully urge the President of the Republic to reconsider both appointments, as the current strategy threatens to further erode confidence in the management of Petroperú and in the efficient use of public resources.