BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 8
By Leman Zeynalova – Trend:
Due to the uncertainty about the duration and impact of the coronavirus pandemic, the extreme volatility of the external environment, and the unpredictability of demand across the businesses, MOL is lowering ITS capital spending for 2020, Trend reports citing the company.
The company is
withdrawing its EBITDA guidance for 2020;
lowering capital spending by at least 25 percent to below USD 1.5bn in 2020, following a project-by-project review to delay non-essential investment;
completing a comprehensive review of operational expenditure to preserve cash
maintaining ample liquidity even after closing the ACG transaction, with around USD 2.0-2.5bn on hand, to weather a potentially longer-lasting crisis and grab opportunities once normalization begins; and
retaining after-tax profits from 2019 fully until the situation normalizes, when they might be paid out as dividends, should shareholders so decide.
MOL Group implements measures not only to mitigate the impact of the current situation on the Group, but also to allow MOL to emerge from the crisis stronger. The company is focusing on protecting the health and safety of its employees, adjusting operations to minimize the spread of COVID-19 and adapting its production volumes to the altered market demand. Operational and capital expenditures will be reduced materially to preserve cash and to allow MOL to manage through challenging times even in the case of a longer lasting crisis.
COVID-19 emergency measures by governments in MOL’s countries of operations have resulted in partial or full lockdown, significantly slowing down economic activity in the company’s core CEE countries. In order to remain resilient, MOL Group has updated its financial and operational guidance.
MOL Group is an integrated, international oil and gas company, headquartered in Budapest, Hungary. It is active in over 40 countries with a dynamic international workforce of 25,000 people and a track record of more than 100 years in the industry. MOL’s exploration and production activities are supported by more than 75 years’ experience in the hydrocarbon field. At the moment, there are production activities in 8 countries and exploration assets in 13 countries. MOL Group operates three refineries and two petrochemicals plants under integrated supply chain management in Hungary, Slovakia and Croatia, and owns a network of about 1900 service stations across 10 countries in Central & South Eastern Europe.
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