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Statoil profits up thanks to increases in oil prices
NORWAY’S Statoil yesterday reported a 34 per cent jump in net profit in the fourth quarter.
The country’s largest oil and gas company saw net profit reach NKr14.5bn (£1.5bn), triggered by higher oil prices.
“Statoil delivered record financial results, further improved safety and made important strategic progress in 2011,” said Helge Lund, Statoil’s chief executive.
He said the company had a good year for exploration in 2011, with discoveries in the North Sea and the Barents Sea that helped to add more than 1bn barrels to Statoil’s resource base.
The company said it was planning capital expenditure of $17bn this year compared with $16bn in 2011. Oil production was 1.975m barrels of oil equivalent for the quarter.