HELPE Q1 core profit rises 4%
Greece’s biggest oil refiner Hellenic Petroleum said on Wednesday its first-quarter core profit had topped estimates, rising 4% as it boosted production despite the coronavirus pandemic.
Hellenic Petroleum, which exports more than half of its output from three oil refineries in Greece, said subdued domestic demand for jet fuel and gasoline due to the coronavirus lockdown was more than offset by the higher production from increased refining availability which boosted exports significantly.
Hellenic Petroleum said it was sticking with its strategy to boost solar and wind power capacity and is targeting commercial operation of a 204-megawatt solar energy plant in northern Greece at the beginning of 2022.
It was also sticking with a planned maintenance shutdown of its 148,000 barrels per day Aspropyrgos refinery in the third quarter.
After adjusting for a fall in the value of its oil inventories, its earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) were €128 million in the period from January to March, above an average forecast of €108 million in a Reuters poll. [Reuters]
