Galp first-quarter net profit jumps 41% as oil prices rise
Galp’s first-quarter net profit rose 41% to €272 million, driven by higher oil output and prices. Company says still expects to reach agreement with the Spanish firm Moeve by the middle of the year.
Galp’s first-quarter net profit rose 41% to €272 million, driven by higher oil output and prices in the context of the conflict in the Middle East.
Galp’s net profit rose 41% year on year to €272 million in the first quarter, as higher oil production and stronger crude prices lifted earnings at one of Portugal’s main listed energy groups.
The result, published on Monday, was slightly below the €276 million average analyst estimate in the company’s consensus.
EBITDA also increased 41% to €943 million between January and March, above the €890 million analyst consensus. Galp said the quarter reflected strong operational execution in its upstream and downstream businesses in what it described as a highly volatile macroeconomic environment shaped by rising geopolitical risk in the Middle East.
In upstream, EBITDA jumped 78% to €685 million, helped by higher production and stronger realised oil prices. Galp had already said in an April 13 trading update that production reached 129,000 barrels per day in the quarter, up from 105,000 a year earlier, reflecting a lower impact from planned maintenance, resilient performance in Brazil and the gradual ramp-up of the Bacalhau FPSO.
Industrial & Midstream EBITDA fell 9% to €198 million, as refining and commodity trading were partly offset by accounting timing effects in oil supply pricing formulas and other inventory effects of around negative €130 million during a rapid rise in commodity prices. In commercial operations, EBITDA rose 37% to €84 million, supported by improving B2B market conditions in Spain, while renewables posted negative EBITDA of €2 million due to pressure from solar power prices in the Iberian market.
Galp also said it is preparing its next exploration and appraisal campaign in Namibia, expected to start at the end of this year. Separately, the company said talks with the shareholders of Spain’s Moeve on a potential merger of their downstream activities are continuing constructively, with an agreement still expected by mid-year.
Originally published at Eco.pt