Moscow — Kremlin-owned fuel big Gazprom plunged to a web lack of 629 billion rubles ($6.9 billion) in 2023, its first annual loss in additional than 20 years, as gross sales to Europe plummeted within the wake of Russia’s conflict in Ukraine.
The earnings, introduced Thursday, spotlight the dramatic decline of Gazprom, one among Russia’s strongest firms.
Analysts had anticipated web earnings of 447 billion rubles ($4.9 billion) in 2023, in keeping with Interfax information company. The corporate made a web revenue of 1.2 trillion ($13.1 billion) rubles in 2022, the 12 months Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
In response to Reuters’ evaluation, it was Gazprom’s first annual loss because the late Nineties or early 2000s, across the time Alexei Miller, an ally of President Vladimir Putin, took over the corporate in 2001.
The corporate, now headquartered in St. Petersburg, made heavy losses within the late Nineties after it racked up foreign-currency debt, inflated in ruble phrases by the monetary disaster of 1998.
Russia’s fuel exports to Europe, as soon as its main export market, have slumped largely due to the political fallout from the battle in Ukraine. Gazprom, which enjoys a monopoly on piping fuel overseas and has an oil unit, has additionally been the highest-profile goal of sweeping Western sanctions.
In response to Reuters’ calculations, the corporate’s pure fuel provides to Europe plummeted 55.6% to twenty-eight.3 billion cubic meters final 12 months.
Gazprom has not printed its personal export statistics because the begin of 2023.
The corporate’s core revenue, or earnings earlier than curiosity, taxes, depreciation and amortization generally known as EBITDA, dropped to 618.38 billion rubles ($6.7 billion) final 12 months from 2.79 trillion rubles ($30.4 billion) in 2022, in keeping with Reuters’ calculations.
The EBITDA was the worst in 22 years, mentioned Ronald Smith from Moscow-based brokerage BCS International Markets.