(Reuters) – Romanian oil and gas group OMV Petrom reported a 57% slump in its fourth-quarter adjusted operating profit on Tuesday, citing weaker commodity prices and the impact of gas and power regulations.
The Bucharest-listed company posted an adjusted operating profit of 955 million lei ($197.61 million), down from 2.24 billion lei a year earlier.
The clean operating result, which is based on the current cost of supply, excludes one-off items and short-term gains and losses from energy inventory holdings.
OMV Petrom, majority-owned by Austria’s OMV, reported weaker performance across all segments for the quarter, pressured by lower oil prices and sales volumes, reduced margins from regulatory changes, and declining refining and sales margins.
A turnover tax introduced in 2024 is estimated to cost OMV Petrom around 250 million lei in 2025, up from 216 million lei last year. While a new 1% tax on construction value that took effect in 2025 is seen to have an impact of middle double figures in million of euros.
The company said it plans to invest about 8 billion lei this year, assuming regulations and taxes remain stable, with the majority directed towards the Neptun Deep project as well as low- and zero-carbon projects.
Neptun Deep, a Black Sea offshore gas project, is expected to start producing in 2027 and holds an estimated 100 billion cubic meters of recoverable gas, making it one of the EU’s most significant natural gas deposits.
($1 = 4.8328 lei)
(Reporting by Antonis Pothitos; Editing by Christian Schmollinger and Sherry Jacob-Phillips)
