Wintershall 2017 Net Profit Doubled on Favorable Oil Prices
March 07 2018 - 4:22AM
Dow Jones News
By Nathan Allen
BASF SE's (BAS.XE) oil-and-gas subsidiary Wintershall AG said
Wednesday its 2017 net profit almost doubled, thanks to higher
hydrocarbon prices and increased earnings from its share in a
Russian natural-gas field.
Net profit for the year was 719 million euros ($889.8 million)
compared with EUR362 million a year earlier, while sales rose 17%
to EUR3.24 billion, the company said.
Wintershall said its earnings before interest and taxes, or
EBIT, climbed to EUR1.04 billion from EUR499 million a year
earlier, due partly to the reversal of impairments.
Improved management of exploration and technology projects, and
cost-cutting measures also helped improve profitability,
Wintershall said.
BASF and LetterOne's intended merger of Wintershall with DEA
Deutsche Erdoel AG should provide further momentum in 2018, and the
company will also begin exploration operations in Brazil, it
said.
"We expect a considerable increase in sales and Ebit before
special items, driven by positive price effects and the start of
production at fields in Norway," said Chief Executive Mario
Mehren.
The company started production at the Maria field in the
Norwegian Sea in December, one year ahead of schedule.
"Our plans for 2018 are based on an average crude oil price
(Brent) of $65 per barrel and an average exchange rate of $1.20 per
euro," Mehren said.
Write to Nathan Allen at nathan.allen@dowjones.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
March 07, 2018 05:07 ET (10:07 GMT)
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