Portugal’s Galp Energia reported an 11 per cent increase in adjusted third-quarter core profit on Monday, beating analysts’ estimates, driven by a jump in refining margins and robust gas trading.
The energy firm reported adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of €911 million ($1.06 billion), surpassing the company-provided consensus of €865 million.
Galp said in a statement that it is "well positioned to surpass" its current guidance of a full-year adjusted EBITDA of €2.7 billion.
Co-CEO Maria Joao Carioca said, "the results show the strength of our investments," and Galp’s performance and efficiency enable it, "to navigate the unpredictability of today’s world."
The adjusted EBITDA of its refining and gas trading business soared to €315 million in the reported quarter from €165 million a year earlier, as the refining margin nearly doubled to $9.5 per barrel from $4.7 a year ago, Galp said in a statement.
The start of LNG deliveries from Venture Global’s Calcasieu Pass export facility in Louisiana also contributed positively, "supporting a 42 per cent rise in natural gas volumes traded", it said.
EBITDA from extracting crude oil from rich fields offshore Brazil, its main business, fell 14 per cent to €464 million, despite the company signalling "good operational performance".
Its share of oil and gas production from its projects in the third quarter increased by two per cent to 115,000 barrels per day, but Brent crude prices fell to an average of $69.1 per barrel in the quarter from $80.3 last year.
Galp is in advanced talks with a shortlist of preferred bidders to sell half of its 80 per cent stake in its offshore Mopane field in Namibia, which has estimated oil-in-place of more than 10 billion barrels.
It said negotiations are advancing, "with discussions supportive of a value accretive partnership."
Galp’s adjusted net profit climbed 53 per cent to €407 million in the quarter, beating the €321 million estimate.
(Reporting by Sergio Goncalves; Editing by Sumana Nandy and Joe Bavier)
