IRVING, Texas–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE: XOM):
Cash flow from operations and asset sales exceeds dividends and net investments1 for the fourth-consecutive quarter
Company makes fifth Guyana discovery; captures 12 high-potential blocks offshore Brazil
Hurricane Harvey reduces earnings by an estimated $160 million, or 4 cents per share
Exxon Mobil Corporation announced estimated third quarter 2017 earnings of $4 billion, or $0.93 per diluted share, compared with $2.7 billion a year earlier as commodity prices improved and performance in the Upstream and Downstream strengthened. Impacts related to Hurricane Harvey reduced earnings by an estimated 4 cents per share.
“A 50 percent increase in earnings through solid business performance and higher commodity prices is a step forward in our plan to grow profitability,” said Darren Woods, chairman, and chief executive officer. “For the fourth-consecutive quarter, we generated cash flow from operations and asset sales that more than covered our dividends and net investments in the business.”
Upstream earnings rose to $1.6 billion as commodity prices increased. Building on its recent success in deepwater exploration, such as the Turbot discovery in Guyana, ExxonMobil added 12 offshore blocks in Brazil, capturing acreage with high resource potential and competitive fiscal terms.
Downstream results increased to $1.5 billion, despite Hurricane Harvey impacts and the absence of favorable asset management gains of $380 million in the prior year from the sale of Canadian retail assets. These results were achieved as the company worked quickly to safely bring refineries back online following the storm and to restore product supplies.
Chemical earnings were $1.1 billion, down slightly from a year ago on lower commodity margins and hurricane impacts, partially offset by volume growth. During the quarter the company enhanced its position to capture growing demand in Asia by completing the purchase of an aromatics plant in Singapore.
1Includes additions to property, plant and equipment and net investments/advances
Third Quarter 2017 Highlights
Earnings of $4 billion increased 50 percent from the third quarter of 2016.
Earnings per share assuming dilution were $0.93.
Cash flow from operations and asset sales increased 33 percent to $8.4 billion, including proceeds associated with asset sales of $854 million.
Capital and exploration expenditures were $6 billion, including an aromatics plant acquisition in Singapore.
Oil-equivalent production was 3.9 million barrels per day, up 2 percent from the prior year. Excluding entitlement effects and divestments, oil-equivalent production remained at 2 percent higher than the prior year.
The corporation distributed $3.3 billion in dividends to shareholders.
Dividends per share of $0.77 increased 2.7 percent compared to the third quarter of 2016.
The company acquired an interest in 12 blocks offshore Brazil during the last bid round completed during the quarter. The bid resulted in the addition of 2 million high-potential acres with competitive fiscal terms.
The company completed the Turbot-1 exploration well offshore Guyana. The well encountered 75 feet (23 meters) of high-quality, oil-bearing sandstone, and represents ExxonMobil’s fifth discovery to date in the country.
ExxonMobil signed a production sharing contract for Block 59 located 190 miles (305 kilometers) offshore Suriname. The deepwater block has an area of 2.8 million acres and significantly expands the corporation’s operated acreage in the Guyana-Suriname basin.
During the quarter, ExxonMobil announced it added 22,000 acres since May to its Permian Basin portfolio through a series of acquisitions and acreage trades. Located in the Delaware and Midland Basins, the new acreage adds over 400 million oil-equivalent barrels to the company’s existing Permian Basin resource base of 6 billion oil-equivalent barrels.
ExxonMobil completed the acquisition of one of the world’s largest aromatics facilities, located in Singapore, from Jurong Aromatics Corporation Pte Ltd. The acquisition will provide operational and logistical synergies between the plant and ExxonMobil’s integrated refining and petrochemical complex, as well as increase ExxonMobil Singapore’s aromatics production to over 3.5 million metric tons per year.
