Braskem S.A.

What it is

Braskem, founded on 16 August 2002 by merging several Brazilian petrochemical assets under the Odebrecht (now Novonor) conglomerate and Petrobras, is the largest producer of thermoplastic resins in the Americas and a leader in biopolymer production. In plain terms, it turns oil and gas feedstocks into the plastic pellets that manufacturers across the continent mould into bottles, pipes, packaging and car parts.

The company operates as a Brazil-based integrated petrochemical company, with activities divided into three segments: Brazil; the United States and Europe; and Mexico. It also holds a globally recognised position as the world’s largest producer of “green” polyethylene, made from sugarcane-based ethanol.

Who owns it

Ownership just changed hands in the most consequential deal of Braskem’s existence. In June 2026, a long-negotiated transaction closed: NSP Investimentos (Novonor’s vehicle) transferred a large block of shares to the Shine I fund — managed by private-equity firm IG4 Capital — giving IG4 roughly 50.1% of voting capital and 34.3% of total capital.

IG4 Capital, a private equity firm focused on distressed assets, acquired Novonor’s debt from a consortium of banks including Itaú, Bradesco, Santander, Banco do Brasil and BNDES, converting it into equity.

Petrobras, which holds approximately 47% of Braskem’s voting shares and 36.1% of total equity, said it is reviewing the terms of the deal. Because IG4 crossed control thresholds under Brazilian corporate law, the fund plans to file for a tender offer for all remaining common and preferred shares.

Who runs it

Hélcio Tokeshi — an IG4 Capital partner with 35 years across public service and private equity — takes over as CEO, as Braskem begins what the company itself calls a new stage combining IG4’s restructuring experience with Petrobras’s technical presence in petrochemicals. Carlos Brandão, also an IG4 partner and former CFO of telecoms group Oi, where he led one of the largest debt restructurings in Latin America, becomes CFO.

The new board, which runs to the 2028 AGM, also includes a newly created dedicated compliance chief — a signal of how seriously the new controllers treat governance risk.

The money, in plain words

Braskem is large by revenue — BRL 70.7bn (US$13.7bn) in its most recent fiscal year — but it is losing money at an alarming rate: it burned through BRL 9.9bn (US$1.9bn) in net losses in FY2025, meaning for every real of sales it lost about 14 cents — a net margin of −13.7%. Three consecutive years of losses (−BRL 4.6bn (US$890 mn) in 2023, −BRL 11.3bn (US$2.2 bn) in 2024, −BRL 9.9bn (US$1.9 bn) in 2025) have wiped out all equity: total liabilities of BRL 98.4bn (US$19.0 bn) now exceed total assets of BRL 81.9bn (US$15.8 bn) by BRL 16.5bn (US$3.2 bn), so shareholders’ equity is deeply negative.

The debt load is the core threat: total borrowings of BRL 71.3bn (US$13.8 bn) against BRL 10.5bn (US$2.0 bn) of cash leave a net debt of BRL 60.8bn (US$11.8bn, our calculation) — roughly 14 times the company’s entire stock-market value. No dividend is being paid, and the P/E ratio is meaningless because there are no earnings to price.

What it is doing now

The June 2026 ownership transfer is the pivot point. Braskem’s stated plan is to combine IG4’s expertise in restructuring complex assets with Petrobras’s technical experience in petrochemicals, pursuing financial reorganisation and operational adjustment to a more competitive environment.

CFO Brandão’s primary mission is to tackle the high debt load; net debt closed 2025 at approximately US$7.5bn by one internal measure.

The company also carries an unresolved liability from the collapse of salt-mining caverns beneath the city of Maceió, Alagoas — a geological crisis caused by decades of Braskem rock-salt extraction that forced the relocation of tens of thousands of residents and generated billions of reais in provisions. The ongoing legal and environmental fallout from the Maceió subsidence, combined with years of weakened competitiveness and volatile global petrochemical margins, frames the full scale of the challenge ahead.

What to watch

• Mandatory tender offer: IG4’s crossing of control thresholds obliges a tender offer for all remaining shares — the price and Petrobras’s response will define the final ownership map.
• Debt restructuring: with net debt near US$11.8bn and negative equity, the new CFO must negotiate refinancings quickly; any covenant breach or downgrade would be critical.
• Maceió liability: the cost of remediation and compensation is still not fully settled and could add further pressure to a balance sheet already in deficit.
• Petrochemical cycle: Braskem’s fortunes turn sharply with the spread between resin prices and naphtha feedstock costs — a global glut from new Chinese capacity has kept that spread narrow for three years running.
• Petrobras’s next move: Petrobras has confirmed its intention to review its stake under portfolio rotation — whether it stays, sells or deepens its role will reshape governance again.

This is news, not investment advice.