French supermajor Total posted disappointing result on Friday, with Q2 profit down 6% on the same period in 2010.
Total said second-quarter net income, excluding one-offs and unrealised gains or losses related to changes in the value of fuel inventories, was 2.79 billion euros ($4.01 billion), below the 2.85 billion average forecast in a Reuters analysts poll.
The company cited the production stoppage resulting from the Libyan conflict, a weak dollar, and revenue-sapping maintenance in the North Sea, as the main reasons for the weak results.
Total’s growth of 7%Â In dollar terms, Total’s underlying result was up 7 percent, far below the performance of rivals Royal Dutch Shell (RDSa.L) and Exxon Mobil , which saw their profits rise 77 percent and 41 percent respectively.
A 13% reduction in the trade-weighted value of the US dollar hit Total hard, as the cruse it produces is denominated in dollars.
Total’s weaker performance was mainly due to a 2% drop in oil and gas production to 2.31 million barrels of oil equivalent per day due to maintenance downtime in North Sea fields and production disruptions in conflict-torn Libya.
Despite one-off impairment and an unfavourable exchange rate, the company remains upbeat. “With a strong balance sheet and a dynamic pace of execution in all of the group’s segments, Total begins the second half of 2011 very confident in its outlook for profitable growth to benefit shareholders,” Total Chairman Christophe de Margerie said in a company statement. In dollar terms the company’s profit were up 7% on Q2 2010.
