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OSLO, July 27 (Xinhua) -- Norwegian oil and gas company Statoil on Wednesday reported lower net operating income and adjusted earnings in the second quarter of 2016, due to low oil and gas prices.
Net operating income was 180 million U.S. dollars in the second quarter compared to 3.64 billion U.S. dollars in the same period of 2015, and the massive reduction was primarily due to the drop in prices for oil and gas and lower refinery margins, the company said in a statement.
Adjusted earnings were 913 million U.S. dollars compared to 2.88 billion U.S. dollars in the same period in 2015. In addition to the continued low prices, the result reflects reduced overall operating costs mainly as a result of the ongoing cost improvement initiatives, the statement said.
Adjusted earnings after tax were negative 28 million U.S. dollars in the second quarter, down from 929 million U.S. dollars in the same period last year, it added.
"We delivered solid operational performance with strong production growth and progress on project development and execution. Our financial results were affected by low oil and gas prices in the quarter," Statoil president and CEO Eldar Saetre was quoted as saying.
"We maintain our production guidance, expecting annual organic production growth of around 1.0 percent from 2014 to 2017. Strict prioritization, good results from our improvement program, and more effective drilling operations allow us to lower our 2016 capital expenditure and exploration guidance," Saetre said.
"We see continued progress on our plan to improve efficiency and make faster and deeper cost reductions," he added. Enditem
