Eni’s gas and LNG business reported an adjusted operating profit of just 111 million euros ($117.2 million) in the third quarter of this year, while the company’s LNG sales rose 11 percent compared to the same period last year.
The adjusted operating profit for Eni’s gas and LNG business decreased 90 percent compared to 1.07 billion euros in the third quarter last year.
According to the Italian firm, the result in the third quarter this year reflected “limited benefits from asset optimization in a market environment characterized by lower volatility and narrower gas spreads when compared with the same period of 2022.”
Additionally, some maintenance on infrastructure reduced available flexibility and arbitrage opportunities, Eni said.
In the January-September period, adjusted operating profit for Eni’s gas and LNG business reached 2.57 billion euros, an improvement of 570 million euros from the same period of 2022, it said.
Overall, Eni reported a 47 percent decline in its adjusted net profit before tax in the third quarter due to weaker oil and gas prices.
Adjusted net profit reached 3.27 billion euros in the third quarter.
LNG sales up in Q3
Eni’s LNG sales rose by 11 percent in the third quarter compared to the same period last year.
The company sold 2 bcm of LNG (1.48 million tonnes) in the July-September period.
This compares to 1.8 bcm in the third quarter of last year and 2.5 bcm in the prior quarter.
LNG sales of 7.2 bcm in the first nine months of this year rose 3 percent compared to 7 bcm in the same period in 2022.
In the third quarter, natural gas sales were 10.91 bcm, down 18 percent compared to the same period in 2022, mainly due to the lower gas volumes marketed in Italy (down 29 percent) to hub and to the industrial segment, Eni said.
In the European markets gas volumes decreased by 7 percent as result of lower sales in the Iberian Peninsula and Benelux, it said.
Total natural gas sales in the January-September period amounted to 36.90 bcm, down 18 percent vs the same period of 2022, due to lower gas volumes marketed in Italy in all segments and in the European markets, Eni said.
Eni has been quite busy developing its LNG portfolio lately.
The firm has just signed a three-year LNG sales and purchase agreement with Merakes LNG Sellers to secure more LNG volumes from Indonesia.
The new contract follows the long-term contract recently signed with the Marine XII JV in Congo for LNG volumes of about 4.5 bcm, and the contract with QatarEnergy for up to 1.5 bcm of LNG from the North Field East project.
Eni expects to launch the Congo FLNG project in December this year.