São Paulo – Saudi Arabia’s state-owned oil company Saudi Aramco released its H1 financial results this Monday for the first time (12). Net income was USD 46.9 billion. Albeit strong, the result is down 11.5% from USD 53 billion in H1 2018, government-run news outlet Saudi Press Agency (SPA).
President and CEO Amin Nasser (pictured) said that disclosing the results for the first time, as part of the company’s USD 12 billion debut international bond issuance, was a milestone for Saudi Aramco. “Despite lower oil prices during the first half of 2019, we continued to deliver solid earnings and strong free cash flow underpinned by our consistent operational performance, cost management and fiscal discipline,” he said.
Earnings before interest and tax was USD 92.5 billion, down from USD 101.3 billion a year earlier. Free cash flow was USD 38 billion, up from USD 35.6 billion in H1 2018. Amin Nasser said hydrocarbon production was maintained at 13.2 million boed.
“Leveraging our strength in Upstream, we continued to deliver on our Downstream growth strategy, including acquisitions in both Saudi Arabia and key international markets. These acquisitions are expected to enhance dedicated crude placement, increase refining and chemicals capacity, capture value from integration and diversify our operations,” the CEO said.
“We also signed an agreement to acquire a 70% equity stake in SABIC” – Saudi Basic Industries Corporation, one of the petrochemical companies with the highest revenues in the world. “This is a major step in accelerating growth in downstream through refining and petrochemicals integration, maximizing the profitability from every molecule we produce,” Nasser said.
Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
