Bogdan Tudorache

Mol posted an EBITDA of over USD 500 million in the first quarter of 2019, the company said.

In Romania, retail diesel sales of MOL Group increased by 2.5% compared to the same period of last year, from 121 kt in Q1 2018, to 124kt in the first three months of this year. Gasoline sales had a slight decrease in volume, reaching 35kt, compared to 36kt in the first quarter of last year.

Global Upstream EBITDA remained flat year-on-year in the first quarter at USD 283mn (HUF 79,4bn) as strong production offset other negative drivers. Production further edged up in the first quarter to 116,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day to a 7-year high, driven by the strong performance of the UK assets.

Downstream posted a weaker first quarter delivering USD 138mn (HUF 38,6bn) clean CCS EBITDA, which is 37% lower than in the same period of the previous year due to the deteriorating refining environment which was partly mitigated by strong internal performance.

Consumer Services continued its double-digit growth with an EBITDA increase of 10% year-on-year. The USD 89mn (HUF 24,9bn) result was due to stronger fuel sales volumes and higher non-fuel contribution. Motor fuel consumption rose 3% year-on-year in the Central Eastern Europe region (with outstanding 5% growth both in Hungary and Croatia), providing a supportive environment.

The Gas Midstream segment reached USD 66mn (HUF 18,4bn) EBITDA in the first quarter, down to 23% year-on-year.