Russia's oil giant Rosneft said Friday its net profit rose by 30.2% in the first quarter from the same period last year to 56 billion rubles ($1 billion).
The results were adjusted however as the company revised its 2014 first-quarter income down from 88 to 43 billion rubles to exclude the exceptional profit from its sale of a stake in Yugragazpererabotka, a gas processing joint venture with Sibur.
Sales were down 6.3% to 1,288 billion ($23.9 billion) and operating profit as measured by earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization decreased by 8.3% to 265 billion rubles.
Rosneft said that the first quarter was characterized by the "drastically adverse influence of macroeconomic factors" including a dramatic drop in the price of oil that was not sufficiently compensated by the weaker ruble.
Rosneft also lamented the "increase in tariffs" by the government for pipeline and railway transport, as well as the increase of the key interest rate by the central bank.
Production of hydrocarbons was up 2.1% from the first quarter of 2014 and amounted to 5.2 million barrels per day, the company said. It was unchanged
Rosneft chairman Igor Sechin said that the company has "demonstrated stability" despite "unfavorable factors for the industry."
"The company continues to efficiently manage operating costs and generate positive free cash flow," he added in the statement, reporting that operating costs went down by 3.1% since the previous quarter.
Rosneft has been hit with Western sanctions over Ukraine and is blacklisted by both the United States and the European Union.
Rosneft is majority-owned by the Russian government, which holds about 70%, with another 20% held by British giant BP.
Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2015
