Originally a family-owned company, the Brasbunker Group first got started as an initiative taken by Portuguese brothers who, when they arrived in Brazil, took advantage of the favorable opportunities to invest in Brazilian markets.
Bunker transport (fuel oil delivery to seagoing vessels) was the first major business activity that led to the growth of São Miguel Navigation, the first company of the Group. After the purchase of the company back in 1965, additional vessels were purchased and reformed becoming the first bunker transport fleet used by Petrobras, in the port of Rio de Janeiro.
The later expansion of the market fomented the rapid growth of São Miguel. New additions were made to the fleet, and in 1978, it was clear that the Company needed its own shipyard. This need gave birth to the São Miguel Shipyard located in the Port of Gradim, in Niterói. Today, the shipyard, covering 20,000 m², can carry on a variety of repairs and build new vessels for the Group fleet as well as for other companies in the sector.
Purchased back in 1976, Linave, a company that was later renamed Skymar, began to operate in the Port of Vitória (Espírito Santo) as far back as 1983 by providing transport services in the port and supplying fuel to a variety of vessels in the ports of Vitória, Praia Mole and Tubarão.
By the mid 90s, São Miguel started to focus on a worldwide problem, which was the growing concern for the environment. The company began modernizing its vessels, and converting others by building double hulls to substantially reduce the risk of oil spillages. In 1998, the company created an Environmental Management area. Two years later, in 2000, it was transformed into a new Group company called Hidroclean, primarly dedicated to the preservation of the environment and to take emergency response actions in the event of oil and chemical spillages to neutralize risks to the environment.
In 1999, São Miguel Navigation launched a major project: the construction of the first generation double hulled ships - the Serra Polar and Serra Nevada. Thanks to modern engineering, the reinforced hull structures of these ships significantly reduce any risk of oil spillages at sea.
In April of 2007, the Group was awarded a tender issued by Petrobras to operate the Environmental Defense Centers (EDC), located along the coast of Northeastern Brazil. In order to manage these areas, the Group founded HDG, a company dedicated to managing Block B, which includes 30% of all the EDCs in Brazil.
One year later, São Miguel made another purchase for the Group, this time belonging to a competitor, LM, which at that time was transporting bunker fuels to Petrobras vessels in the Port of Paranaguá, in Paraná.
Based on a trajectory of hard work and success, the Brasbunker Group, with a tripod of strategic activities: offshore services, bunker supplies and environmental protection, has become a market leader in Brazil, providing quality products and services to more than 100 Brazilian and foreign companies.