The verdict awarded MOL a total of about 236 million dollars including interest, the oil company announced Wednesday.Continue reading
In the second quarter of 2022, Mol Group achieved a “pure” EBITDA (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation) estimated at HUF 483.7 billion (EUR 1,2 billion) and operating profits estimated at HUF 372.8 billion (EUR 944 million), according to a report published on the company’s website on Friday morning.
Mol Group is a leading integrated Central Eastern European oil and gas corporation headquartered in Budapest, Hungary. It has operations in over 30 countries and employs 25,000 people worldwide.
Net sales on a consolidated unaudited basis were 2,491 billion forints, compared with 1,412.6 billion forints at the same time last year and 1,933.4 billion forints in the previous quarter. Net EBITDA was HUF 246.8 bn in the same period last year and HUF 271.7 bn in the previous quarter, almost double the increase on a year-on-year and quarter-on-quarter basis. Net operating profit exceeded HUF 132 billion a year ago and was close to HUF 168 billion in the previous quarter.
The figures are in line with market expectations, which were for a similar level of net EBITDA approaching HUF 500 billion. Estimates had suggested an exceptional result, mainly because Mol was able to buy oil from Russia at relatively favorable prices in the second quarter, and fuel sales remained strong thanks to the government’s price cap.
The company also performed well on a half-yearly basis. In the first six months, net EBITDA reached HUF 755.4 billion, compared to HUF 428.7 billion in the same period last year. The extra profit tax and price controls held back results, but both refinery margins and sales were high, with Mol rescheduling its major shutdown activities into the second half of the year due to strong demand, they added.
Commenting on the report, CEO Zsolt Hernádi added that
the energy industry faced unprecedented uncertainties, but that Mol still performed in line with its plans and has never been more committed to its strategic goals.
In the longer term, one of the most important aspects is for Mol to move towards a low-carbon economy and become a key player in the circular economy, it said.
Meanwhile, Antonio Guterres, the Secretary General of the United Nations posted on Twitter about how the combined profits of the largest energy companies are close to 100 billion dollars in the first quarter of this year.
The combined profits of the largest energy companies in the first quarter of this year are close to $100 billion.
This grotesque greed of the fossil fuel industry and their financiers is punishing the poorest and most vulnerable people, while destroying our only home.
— António Guterres (@antonioguterres) August 4, 2022
According to Guterres, „This grotesque greed of the fossil fuel industry and their financiers is punishing the poorest and most vulnerable people, while destroying our only home.” He added that governments should tax these excessive profits in order to support vulnerable people in these hard times. According to reports, U.S. based Exxon Mobil made a 18 billion dollars profit in the last 3 months, while Shell and Chevron each earned about 12 billion dollars, a record profit.
Featured Photo: MTI/Komka Péter