LIMA, Nov 18 (Reuters) - The chairman of Petroperu (PETROBC1.LM) , opens new tab said on Monday that Peru's state oil firm will look to its creditors for new sources of financing to help alleviate its liquidity problems.

At a press conference at the firm's Lima headquarters, Chairman Alejandro Narvaez also said that Petroperu would be hiring an international management firm very soon to carry out a planned restructuring.

Peru's prime minister has previously backed company calls for private management as part of a restructuring plan, which would also sell off non-operative assets and slash payroll.

"We have a serious liquidity problem," Narvaez said, adding he would launch a series of actions intended to reduce the firm's losses, seek a close relationship with Petroperu's creditors and ease the firm's debt burden.

Narvaez was named chairman earlier this month alongside six other board members, after the entire board tendered their resignations in September citing the company's financial issues.

He said the recovery plan would include selling non-strategic assets, importing cheaper crude and developing a strategy to recover its domestic market share, which stands at 33% compared to 44% in 2020.

Petroperu's losses of $745 million in the first nine months of the year are expected to grow to $960 million by year-end, he added.

Narvaez said he would put together a team of lawyers to collect debts owed by the state to the oil firm, which he said total some 8 billion soles ($2.12 billion) including tax credits and employee pensions.

Petroperu's creditors included bondholders from two international issues in 2017 and 2021 worth around $3 billion, used to finance part of the $6.5 billion modernization of its Talara refinery.

It also received a $1.3 billion loan in 2018 from a group of foreign banks, guaranteed by Spanish insurance firm Cesce.

In September, the government approved some $1.75 billion in further financing to help keep the oil firm operating as it manages a mounting debt and dwindling cash.

The country's main fuel supplier, Petroperu has said that it needs at least $2.5 billion to continue running.

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https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/peru-state-oil-firm-petroperu-seek-new-financing-creditors-2024-11-18/