Last year, the oil refining company, which is part of the Rompetrol group, posted gross consolidated turnover of $4.9 billion, up 6% from $4.6 billion in 2012.
“The 2013 increased operational efficiency of the Petromidia Refinery improved the consolidated financial results of Rompetrol Rafinare, as refining margins decreased by 30%, from 35 $/ton in 2012 to 24 $/ton in 2013,” the company said in a statement Monday.
It said the consolidated financial results of the company have been mainly influenced by international trends–a 62% decrease of the difference between the Brent and the Ural crude, from 0.95 $/bbl in 2012 to 0.36 $/bbl in 2013, and a 4% decrease for gasoline and diesel, plus a 4% decrease in the RON/USD exchange rate.
Rompetrol Rafinare’s exports amounted to $1.7 billion at the end of 2013, similar to the 2012 level.
“Operationally, the refinery reached and maintained the 14,000 tons/day maximum capacity level, with record results. The Diesel yields reached, on average, 46% in 2013, while fuel yields (petrol, Diesel, Jet) reached 85.6% in 2013, the best from the refinery’s history,” the release reads.
Petromidia produced almost 2 million tons of diesel fuel in 2013, an all-time high since its 1979 commissioning. The improvement of operational results, together with the historical results of the Petromidia refinery in 2013, were supported by the 2012 completion of the wide program for the upgrade and increase of the processing activity of the refinery to 5 million tons a year.
In the fourth quarter alone, Rompetrol Rafinare’s net loss reached $12.8 million, from $48 million in the year-earlier period. Sales were up 25% on the year to $1.49 billion in the October-December period.
The consolidated financial results of Rompetrol Rafinare include the results of Rompetrol Rafinare and subsidiaries Rompetrol Petrochemicals, Rom Oil, Rompetrol Downstream, Rompetrol Quality Control and Rompetrol Logistics (together with the Rompetrol Gas). The results are unaudited and consolidated, and the reporting has been carried out in accordance with the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS).
Rompetrol Rafinare is 55.31%-owned by Rompetrol, a unit of the Kazakh state-run oil and gas company KazMunayGas, while the Romanian industry privatization office OPSPI owns a 44.69% stake.
Earlier this month, the Romanian government approved a memorandum of understanding with Rompetrol, under which the latter has agreed to buy back 26.69% in Rompetrol Rafinare in exchange for $200 million. However, the country’s antitrust council warned the government must organize a public auction to sell its shares in the refinery in order to comply with the competition norms.