Equinor ASA (EQNR), a Norwegian petroleum company, on Wednesday reported a surge in earnings for the fourth-quarter, amidst an increased demand, especially from gas and power.
In addition, for 2023, the company has announced a share buyback program of up to $6 billion, including shares to be redeemed from the Norwegian State.
For the final-quarter of 2022, the energy firm posted a net income of $7.90 billion, higher than $3.37 billion, reported for the same period a year ago.
Adjusted earnings were at $15.1 billion, lesser than last year's $15 billion. However, post-tax adjusted earnings stood at $5.80 billion as against $4.40 billion of previous fiscal.
Operating income moved up to 16.6 billion from $13.6 billion a year ago.
For the final-quarter, Equinor delivered a total equity production of 2,046 mboe per day, down from 2,158 mboe per day of 2021. The decline was mainly due to turnarounds in the U.S. offshore, the exit from Russian assets and deferral of gas production from the Norwegian continental shelf to periods with higher demand, the company said in a statement.
The Board has proposed an ordinary cash dividend of $0.30 per share for the quarter, up from $0.20 per share of the third quarter.
In addition, the firm has proposed an extraordinary cash dividend of $0.60 per share for the three-month period, which is based on strong earnings and the robust financial position.
Equinor said that first tranche of the 2023 share repurchase program of $1 billion will commence on February 9, and end no later than March 24.
Looking ahead, for the fiscal 2023, Equinor expects an annual production growth of around 3 percent in oil and gas.
For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com
Business News