Equinor Slashes Dividends

The board of directors at Norway's Equinor have decided to pay out cash dividends of $0.09/share from earnings in the first quarter of 2020, which is 67% less than the payment for the fourth quarter of 2019.

The directors took the decision because of unprecedented market conditions and uncertainties, Equinor said in a statement on April 23. 

"Equinor has already taken forceful actions to strengthen our liquidity and financial resilience under the current circumstances, CEO Eldar Saetre commented.

The state oil company recently announced steep cuts to capital and operational spending this year. As part of its crisis response, it has also suspended its $5bn buyback scheme and raised $5bn in debt.

Equinor had been due to release its first-quarter results on April 30 but has delayed publication until May 7, because of the impact of Covid-19 on employees' work. The company swung to a net loss in the fourth quarter, as revenues slumped as a result of lower prices.