By DIANA KINCH

Brazilian state-controlled oil producer Petroleo Brasileiro, or Petrobras, said it halted operations at a distilling unit at its Duque de Caxias, or Reduc, oil refinery in Rio de Janeiro state Monday due to a small fire.

Operations at the distilling unit will be restarted within hours as the fire has been brought under control, a Petrobras press officer said late Monday afternoon.

The incident won't cause any shortfall in products output, the officer said.

Petrobras is analyzing the causes of the fire, which didn't cause any injuries or environmental damage, the company said in a statement.

The emergency was rapidly identified and controlled by the refinery's own staff within 30 minutes, according to the statement.

Reduc, which started operations in 1961, is Petrobras' most comprehensive refinery operation, producing 52 products including lubricants, paraffin, natural gas, aviation fuel, diesel and sulfur.

Dow Jones Newswires