PetroVietnam Gas Corporation, Vietnam's biggest listed energy firm, said Friday its net profit in the first quarter ending March stood nearly flat compared with the same period last year, a significant improvement after reporting an annual net profit fall of 44 percent in the same period a year ago.
The Ho Chi Minh City-based firm, also known as PV Gas, reported January-March net profit reached an estimated VND1.476 trillion ($65 million), almost unchanged from a year ago while revenue rose nearly 7 percent in the same period to about VND15 trillion, it said in a statement, advising unaudited results for the first quarter.
Last year PV Gas, the gas processing arm of state oil and gas PetroVietnam group, made a net profit of VND1.478 trillion in the first quarter, far below the VND2.66 trillion reported in the same period of 2015, as revenue fell 9.6 percent to VND14.04 trillion, based on the company's financial statement.
In the whole of 2016, PV Gas said its net profit fell 14 percent to VND7.17 trillion as global crude oil prices decreased 15 percent from the previous year to an average $45 per barrel.
This year PV Gas produced nearly 2.5 billion cubic meters of natural gas in the first three months, or 27 percent of its annual target, the statement said.
Condensate and liquefied petroleum gas output have also reached around 30 percent of the annual targets for 2017, PV Gas said.
Overall, Vietnam's natural gas output reached an estimated 2.52 billion cubic meters in the first quarter, down 8.9 percent from a year ago, government statistics show.
In February, PV Gas signed an agreement with PetroVietnam Exploration Production Corporation to develop the second phase to tap gas at the Su Tu Trang (White Lion) field off the country's southern coast between 2020 and 2035.
Gas output from Su Tu Trang, one of the four fields in block 15-1, could offset the country's declining natural gas output and helps meet Vietnam's rising demand for fuel in coming years.
PV Gas is scheduled to hold its shareholder meeting on April 17 to discuss production and business targets for 2017.
PetroVietnam, its parent firm, has already projected natural gas output this year to fall 9.4 percent to 9.61 billion cubic meters, and the crude oil output would drop 14.6 percent to 14.2 million tons, or 285,000 barrels per day.
The Vietnamese government has planned lower crude oil output this year as it is stepping up the restructuring of the economy toward sustainable growth via expanding the sectors which do not rely on the exploitation of natural resources.
PV Gas stocks closed up 4.4 percent at VND57,200 per share on Friday.