Adaptability to new technology: QR Codes Pe oil f Etrobras mulls more fields sales

One of my favorite books is called The Tipping Point, by Malcolm Gladwell. I’m sure I’ve referenced it before because it greatly impacted how I thought about the way things happen in every aspect of society. In 2014 I became obsessed with new technology and their applications. It started with wearable tech, and veered into virtual and augmented reality. At the time google glass was a thing, and FitBit was taking off.

(Image, model wearing Google Glass Technology)

While those tools seemed far away from me I came across QR codes—and I thought they were so interesting, that I made a laptop case that had my blog name and a QR code that lead to my website, on it. It was a conversation starter, but I could count on one hand how many people used it. Nobody really knew about the technology— we were just being weaned off of Blackberry so phone cameras didn’t automatically read them, you would have to download an app.

Fast forward to 2021 and every smart phone has a built in QR scanner and beyond that the rate of adoption of QR codes has increased vastly. I began writing this article in July 2021 and in the past 5 months I have seen a plethora of businesses begin using this technology in their marketing.

So, what is a QR code?

A quick response code is a scannable image like the barcode on the items you purchase every day. This unique code has a unique look—much like a very pixelated barcode and contains different data—websites or social media links, links to forms or coupons, and easy ways to pay through connected apps, to name a few. (Picture of a random QR code) How can businesses benefit? I remember in the height of the pandemic, or at least mid-way thru, somehow ending up at the Marriott hotel and being completely enamored by their updated ordering process that had completely foregone printed menus and just required you to scan a QR code to access their menu on your phone. Give me the option of placing my order and paying on my phone and I would have combusted from excitement.

These are simple things but they are so foreign to buying experiences in Guyana. I can’t help but revel in excitement.

There are numerous applications for QR codes that can increase efficacy and the ease of doing business. As industries have transformed through the pandemic, restaurants can take advantage of the ease and increased safety for those eating in house by codifying their menu.

Another great application is in healthcare, being able to access information thru a QR code they can help with patient ID’ing and patient follow up. They are also being applied in efficient ways, like in Hawaii for travelling during the pandemic—all information needed to get in to the country and avoid quarantine is uploaded and you’re given a QR code to use during travel to expedite the entire process.

Brazil’s state-controlled oil company, Petrobras, plans to continue selling off its least profitable oil fields in 2022 and stick to market-friendly policies even as the country heads into an election year, with candidates debating its independence.

Petrobras is focusing on selling legacy oil fields onshore and in shallow waters where costs per barrel are higher than in ultra-deep waters, Chief Financial Officer Rodrigo Araujo Alves said Tuesday in an interview on

Bloomberg. The company also plans to continue selling off refineries, a process that has made the domestic fuel market more competitive. “Upstream assets are not so affected” by the elections, says Araujo. “We expect to deliver on signings and closings in 2022.”

Assets sales have been a key component of Petrobras’s success at debt reduction in recent years. The Rio de Janeiro-based producer has increased dividend payments after bringing total debt below US$60 billion, and additional asset sales will help to guarantee dividend payments should oil prices decline.

Petrobras is also sticking to its policy of tracking international gasoline and diesel prices even though the company has come under pressure from Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro and opposition politicians to keep prices in check. The recent drop in oil prices has temporarily removed the need for domestic fuel price increases. Araujo said the company expects Brent to average US$72 a barrel next year.

The company’s commitment to market-based fuel prices is getting challenged on the campaign trail. Former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who currently leads opinion polls ahead of 2022 elections, has said he will reverse Petrobras fuel policy in order to keep prices in check. Petrobras lost tens of billions of dollars subsidising gasoline and diesel when Brazil was governed by Lula’s Workers’ Party.

Last week, Petrobras unveiled a 24 per cent increase in its five-year business plan to US$68 billion, bringing it closer to levels seen before the pandemic crashed the oil market in 2020. A windfall from higher prices, along with asset sales, is helping fund the development of giant fields in ultra-deep waters of the South Atlantic known as pre-salt reserves.