Norwegian energy giant and LNG operator Statoil swung to a quarterly profit due in part to rising oil and gas prices, and higher production.
The company on Wednesday reported a fourth-quarter IFRS net income of $2.6 billion, compared to last year’s loss of $2.8 billion.
Adjusted earnings were $4 billion in the fourth quarter, up from $1.7 billion in the same period in 2016.
Statoil delivered equity production of 2,134 mboe per day in the fourth quarter, an increase from 2,095 mboe per day in the same period in 2016.
“In a recovering market, we delivered strong earnings and cash flow from all business segments. We had record high production both in the fourth quarter and for the full year, supported by continued solid operational performance,” said Eldar Sætre , President and CEO of Statoil.
“We expect long-term underlying earnings growth, and in line with our dividend policy the board proposes to increase the dividend by 4.5% to $0.23 per share,” he added.
Sætre went on to say that Statoil had taken down its capital expenditure to $9.4 billion dollars from an initial guiding of $11 billion.
“Our cash flow generation was strong across the business. At an average oil price of around 54 dollars per barrel, we generated 3.1 billion dollars in free cash flow in 2017 and strengthened our financial position. We reduced our net debt ratio by more than 6 percentage points during this year, after having done several value-enhancing acquisitions,” said Sætre.