OMV Petrom closed the first half of this year (H1) with a net profit of almost 2.63 billion lei, up 178%, compared to the net result of 944 million lei recorded in the same period last year, according to financial data submitted, Wednesday, Bucharest Stock Exchange.
In the second quarter of this year, OMV Petrom reported a net profit of 1.22 billion lei, down from the first quarter of 2004 (1.399 billion lei), but up from the same period in 2023, when it reported a loss of 537 million lei.
Sales revenues decreased by 3% in the first half of the year, from 17.864 billion lei in the January-June 2023 period to 17.248 billion lei in the same period in 2024. In the second quarter of 2024 the group reported sales revenues of 8.704 billion of lei, increasing compared to the previous quarter (8.544 billion lei), but also compared to the same period in 2023 (8.391 billion lei).
“In the first 6 months we had a good performance, supported by our integrated business model, the return of market demand for our products and higher utilization rates of our downstream assets. However, lower gas and energy prices electricity and the lower volumes of hydrocarbons available for sale led to a 15% lower CCA operating result, excluding special items, of approximately 3 billion lei. During this period, we contributed approximately 8 billion lei to the state budget of Romania, including dividends, and we have invested approximately 2.4 billion lei. Our main role is to provide energy and we have done this successfully: the new wells and capital repairs have contributed significantly to the production of hydrocarbons, we have stored large quantities of gas, fulfilling the legal obligation, the refinery continued to operate above the EU average, and the Brazi power plant has an important contribution to the stability of the electricity market in Romania. In parallel, we continued the development of Neptun Deep, advanced with the renewable energy and electro-mobility projects and made the final investment decision for a SAF/HVO production unit. With this progress and with investments of up to 8 billion lei planned for 2024, we are well positioned to be leaders of the energy transition in Romania and South-Eastern Europe”, said Christina Verchere, CEO of OMV Petrom.
CCA’s operating result excluding special items was 3.1 billion lei in the first half of this year, 15% lower compared to the result recorded in the same period last year, determined mainly by lower gas and electricity prices and the lower sales of hydrocarbons, partially offset by the higher utilization rate of the refinery and the good performance of the sales channels.
According to the cited source, in the area of Exploration and Production, the operating result excluding special items was 1.6 billion lei compared to 2.1 billion lei in the first half of last year, determined mainly by lower gas prices and lower volumes of hydrocarbon sales. Good results from new wells and workovers partly mitigated the natural decline, resulting in a 3% decline in production from last year. Production cost increased 6% to approximately $15.8/boe due to higher personnel costs and lower production available for sale.
In the Refining and Marketing sector, CCA operating profit excluding special items was approximately 1.2 billion lei, from a low base of 758 million lei in the first half of last year, following the planned overhaul of the refinery in Q2 /23 and the improvement in sales channel performance, partially offset by lower refining margins.
Total sales of refined products increased by 14% in the first half of the year, while retail sales in Romania increased by 6% compared to the same period last year.
In the Gas and Energy sector, an operating result excluding special items of around 400 million lei was reported, compared to 1.2 billion lei in H1 2023, reflecting a good operational performance in both the gas and energy segments electricity, although influenced by changes in legislation and market dynamics.
“Natural gas sales volumes were 10% lower, due to lower volumes to the wholesale market, including regulated customers, and to end users, while the consumption of the Brazi power plant was higher. Net electricity production was of approximately 2.1 TWh compared to approximately 1 TWh in S1/23, the highest production for the first half of the year, the Brazi plant being in a shorter planned overhaul compared to the same period of 2023”, it is stated in the group’s statement, according to Agerpres.
In the first six months of this year, the group’s total investments were 2.4 billion lei, 1% higher than the January-June 2023 period, directed mainly to Exploration and Production.
Net liabilities as of June 30, 2024 (including leasing) decreased by 9%, to 12.088 billion lei, compared to the similar period in 2023.
The OMV Petrom Group had 8,098 employees at the end of June 2024, up 5% compared to June 2023.