A BP company logo is displayed on a fuel pump in the forecourt of a gas station operated by BP Plc in London, UK
Chris Ratcliffe | Bloomberg | Getty Images
LONDON – Energy giant BP reported a weaker than expected full year net loss on Tuesday after a tumultuous 12 months in which the global oil and gas industry faced a barrage of bad news.
The UK-based oil and gas company posted an underlying replacement cost loss of $ 5.7 billion for the full year, which is used to replace net profit / loss. That compared to net income of $ 10 billion for fiscal 2019.
Analysts polled by Refinitiv had expected a net loss of 4.8 billion US dollars for the full year.
BP posted net income of $ 115 for the fourth quarter Million, missing analyst expectations of $ 285.5 million.
The company said full-year results were driven by lower oil and gas prices, significant exploration write-offs, pressure on refining margins and depressed demand. It warned that the ongoing coronavirus pandemic would continue to affect performance.
“2020 will be remembered forever for the pain and grief caused by Covid-19. Lives have been lost – livelihoods have been destroyed. Our sector has also been hit hard. Road and air travel are falling, as are oil demand, prices.” and margins, “said Bernard Looney, CEO of BP, said in a statement.
BP’s latest numbers come from energy companies trying to prove to investors that they have found a more stable stance due to stronger commodity prices.
The oil and gas industry fell into crisis last year when the coronavirus pandemic coincided with a historic demand shock, falling commodity prices, evaporating profits, unprecedented write-downs and tens of thousands of job cuts. It will likely become known as the worst year in the history of the oil markets, the head of the International Energy Agency said earlier.
The world’s largest oil and gas companies are now trying to put that behind, pointing instead to the prospect of an economic recovery in 2021 and hoping for fuel demand to recover in the months ahead.
Looney called 2020 a “key year” for the company and the “toughest of his career”.
“We launched a net zero ambition, mapped out a new strategy to become an integrated energy company, and started an offshore wind business in the US. We started to reinvent BP – nearly 10,000 people have the company leave, “said Looney.
“I appreciate our team’s dedication to delivering the energy the world needs and I’m grateful for the support we’ve received from investors and the communities we work in. We expect a lot for all of us in 2021 better days, “he added.
BP’s shares are up more than 6% since the start of the year, after rising nearly 46% last year.
Oil prices
The international benchmark for Brent crude oil futures was trading at $ 56.94 a barrel on Tuesday morning, up over 1%, while US West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures were trading at $ 54.17, up 1.2%.
Oil prices have steadily improved since the beginning of the year, aided by ongoing production cuts and the mass rollout of Covid vaccines.
However, major forecasters including the IEA and OPEC have warned that the outlook for the oil market for 2021 is still tarnished by pandemic fears.
An increase in coronavirus cases in recent weeks has led to renewed lockdowns and travel restrictions in some countries.
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