Russia’s LUKOIL released its audited consolidated financial statements for 2018 prepared in accordance with the International Financial Reporting Standards, corporate webpage reported.
According to the press release, 2018 sales increased by 35.4% year-on-year to RUR 8 tln ($124 bln), mainly due to higher hydrocarbon prices, weaker ruble, increase in oil trading volumes, as well as higher gas sales volumes. Lower international wholesale volumes of refined products as a result of higher domestic retail sales volumes and lower refined products trading volumes constrained the sales growth.
As the company noted, in 2018 profit attributable to shareholders grew by 47.8%, whereas capital expenditures declined by 11.7% year-on-year. The decrease was mainly driven by lower investments in gas projects in Uzbekistan.
Yet in 2018 free cash flow more than doubled due to higher operating cash flow before changes in working capital as well as lower capital expenditures. LUKOIL Group’s average hydrocarbon production was 2,319,000 boe per day (3.8% up) while gas production was 33.5 bln cubic meters (16.2% up), and refineries’ output increased by 0.4% year-on-year to 63.8 mio tons of refined products.