Petrobras announces sponsorship strategy.

Petrobras, Brazil's biggest oil company, will continue to back the BMW.Williams F1 team and its own David Sears'-run F3000 Junior Team in 2001, according to Mr. Claudio Thompson, the company's sponsorship co-ordinator.

Petrobras' total motorsports budget is kept secret, but the amount is not thought to be higher than US$10million, and includes, for example, both the cost of being Williams' technical sponsor and covering the expenses with Petrobras Jr team. As part of its role with the former, Petrobras develops high performance lubes and fuels together with Williams and BMW and, this season, it is expected that Petrobras will supply the team with around 160.000 litres fuel. To Petrobras Junior Team, the company will give about 600 litres of lubricant during the year.

"We are proud to take a F3000 race out of Europe for the first time in history," said Thompson, remembering that the first race this year will be at Interlagos, supporting the Brazilian F1 GP, on 31 March.

Apart from Williams and its F3000 team, Petrobras also sponsors many local formulae, including Stock Car - the Brazilian version of America's NASCAR - Formula Chevrolet, the South American Formula Three series - in which it partners Avallone Motorsports - karting and Mini Baja. Petrobras also has a team taking part at the Rally Paris-Dakar.

"We changed our strategy last season and stopped sponsoring drivers," Thompson explained, "This season we will continue investing on teams and testing new technologies with them, which help us to develop new products thinking on our consumers."