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(Reuters) --
Gazprom's Q311 earnings fell to RUB156bn (USD5.14bn), a 3% fall from Q310. This
is the first 2011 quarter that saw a year-on-year contraction in net profit.
Despite a 22% growth in gas sales, the company's returns were hit by RUB148bn
(USD4.89bn) worth of financial expense, a 228% increase on Q310, mostly caused
by foreign exchange (FX) losses on debt issued for the company's
capital-intensive investments. The company had increased its net debt by 20% to
RUB1.04trn (USD34.37bn). Despite these underwhelming results, the company beat
expectations with a net profit attributable to shareholders of RUB152bn
(USD5.02bn) against a RUB150bn (USD4.94bn).
The company's revenues were however boosted by its refining business, which
thanks to secure feedstock at a time when European refiners were struggling to
compensate for the interruption in Libyan light crude supplies, grew by 43%
y-o-y. Gazprom also benefited from successful diversification into the power
sector, which bolstered its bottom line. |
