November 14 (SeeNews) - Romanian natural gas producer Romgaz [BSE:SNG] said on Thursday that its January-September net profit rose 18.9% year-on-year to 1.185 billion lei ($275 million/250 million euro).
Romgaz' revenue increased by an annual 10.1% to 3.79 billion lei in the first nine months of 2019, following an increase of sales of gas from both domestic production and from gas purchased for resale, the company said in a statement filed with the Bucharest Stock Exchange, BVB.
The consolidated revenue from gas sales rose by an annual 12.92% but this increase was offset by a decrease by 50.61% of electricity sales revenues.
Total expenses rose by an annual 9% to 2.53 billion lei in the period under review.
During the first nine months of 2019, national gas consumption decreased by 5.7%, while Romgaz deliveries, consisting of deliveries to customers, CET Iernut consumption and technological consumption, decreased by 5.4% on the year.
Romgaz planned investments of 1.245 billion lei, out of which it has used 609 million lei at end-September.
The net profit of Romgaz fell 22% to 1.43 billion lei in 2018, as royalties and taxes increased.
The majority shareholder of Romgaz is the Romanian state with a 70% stake, with the remaining 30% in free float on the BVB.
Shares in Romgaz traded 0.13% lower at 37.45 lei lei by 0940 CET on Thursday on the BVB.
In October, Romgaz signed a MoU with Azerbaijan's national oil company SOCAR on cooperation in oil and gas upstream projects.
(1 euro=4.7635 Romanian lei)