Petronas 9M Profit Drops 11%

Malaysian state-run Petronas’ net profit for the nine months to September 30 (9M 2019) dropped 11% from the same period in 2018 to ringgit 36.4bn ($8.7bn), mainly due to lower revenue and net impairment recognised in the E&P segment, it said November 26 in a statement.

Petronas recorded a 3% drop in revenue at ringgit 176.2bn, primarily due to lower average realised prices for major products. This was partially offset by higher sales volume predominantly for LNG and petroleum products as well as the effect of the weakening ringgit against the US dollar, the company said.

For the three months to September 30 (Q3 2019), net profit nearly halved to ringgit 7.42bn from ringgit 14.34bn in the same period last year. Revenue in Q3 declined to ringgit 55.11bn from ringgit 63.91bn in the year-ago period, primarily due to lower average realised prices for major products, Petronas said.

Total production volume for 9M was 2.32mn barrels of oil equivalent/day, slightly higher than the 2.31mn boe/day in the same period in 2018, mainly attributable to higher natural gas production, partially offset by lower liquid production from Malaysia.

Total LNG sales volume for 9M was 5.3% higher at 21.9mn metric tons as against 20.8mn mt in the same period in 2018, mainly attributed to higher production volume from Petronas LNG complex in Bintulu, the company said. LNG production during 9M was up 9% at 20.6mn mt as compared with 18.9mn mt in the same period in 2018, contributed by higher feed gas supply and better plant performance, Petronas said.

Meanwhile, the company said that the outlook for the industry remains challenging owing to slowing global economy, geopolitical tensions and ongoing global trade issues, resulting in demand disruption.

“The board expects the overall year-end performance of Petronas Group to be affected by these factors,” the company said.