Madrid: Spanish energy company Repsol yesterday posted a 62 per cent fall in third-quarter net profit, hit by weak oil prices which outweighed a solid refining business and sent its shares sharply lower.
Europe’s fifth-biggest oil company by market value last month abandoned its growth ambitions to focus on protecting its investment grade rating and ensuring a generous dividend in a lower crude price environment.
Repsol said it would step up asset sales, trim exploration and production investments and cut costs to generate more cash and pay back debt. The firm said its average recurring net profit adjusted for one-time gains and inventory effects was 159 million euros ($171m) in the third quarter.
While the refining unit surprised on the upside with a 260pc increase in its contribution to profits on the quarter and a refining margin of $8.5 per barrel, many investors were disappointed by the higher than expected loss in the production business.
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