OMV’s quarterly profits have taken a battering from unrest in Libya and Yemen, and the company said it is unclear when its production levels would stabilise.
In its third quarter results released today the Austrian oil firm confirmed that production for 2011 would be below last year’s level of 318,000 bpd.
Net profit excluding one-offs and inventory valuations fell 20% to EUR 233 million ($321.7 million), lagging an EUR 259 million estimate suggested by a Reuters poll of analyst forecasts. Increased revenue from high oil prices was not enough to compensate for the losses.
The company owed 10% of total production to Libya before the war and has not yet returned to the country, declining to provide a timetable for production and saying an announcement would following the coming weeks.
“In the upcoming weeks the industry will have clearer indication in what situation the fields are,” said Chief Executive Officer Gerhard Roiss in a conference call after OMV released its third-quarter earnings.
“All future activities are dependent on a stable security situation in the country. It is therefore premature to give guidance on when production will be back to significant levels,” OMV said in its quarterly report.
