Refiner Orlen's Q4 profit falls 60% y/y on lower volumes, prices

(Reuters) - Poland's Orlen on Thursday reported a 60% slump in fourth-quarter profit to 7.35 billion zlotys ($1.84 billion) on lower sales volumes and weaker prices for its refined products.

The state-controlled refiner's 2023 full-year profit was also 30.5% lower year-on-year at 27.55 billion zlotys. Weak results from units Lotos Group and Baltic Power impacted the group's performance.

The refining and upstream segments saw the steepest falls, due to lower margins and higher costs, Orlen said.

The group's EBITDA for the fourth quarter amounted to 11.16 billion zlotys, which was 5 billion zlotys lower than year ago. The gas segment contributed almost 11 billion zlotys.

Expenditures planned for 2024 have risen to 38.4 billion zlotys, of which 27.9 billion will be spent on growth, mainly in the upstream, petrochemicals and energy segments, the company said.

Orlen also plans develop its operations in Poland, Norway, and the Czech Republic, it added.

The company expects crude oil prices in 2024 at around $82 per barrel, with refining margins forecast to decrease to around $12 per barrel as new refineries in Mexico and Nigeria come on stream.

At 0827 GMT shares were up at 0.2%, at the bottom of Poland's blue chip index WIG20.

($1 = 3.9844 zlotys)

(Reporting by Marta Maciag; Editing by Kim Coghill and David Goodman and Miral Fahmy)