OMV (Vienna, Austria) says its second-quarter 2020 ethylene/propylene net margin has fallen to €393/metric ton ($445), down from €475/metric ton in the prior-year quarter and €459/metric ton in the first quarter of this year.
The company calculates its margin based on Western European contract prices, with naphtha as feedstock.
No production volume figures for its petrochemicals segment were given in the trading update released today. OMV’s oil and gas production fell to 464,000 barrels of oil equivalent/day (boe/day) in the second quarter from 490,000 boe/d in the equivalent period last year. The company’s indicator refining margin fell to $2.26/barrel (bbl) from $3.18/bbl last year and $4.93/bbl in the first quarter, it says. OMV’s refinery utilization rate for the second quarter plunged to 79% from 96% a year earlier, it adds.
The company recorded “a positive contribution from refining margin hedges in a mid-double-digit million Euros magnitude,” and says it has “locked in” a positive quarterly effect of a similar magnitude for the remaining quarters of this year.
OMV is scheduled to publish its second quarter results on 29 July.
By: Mark Thomas
Source: Chemical Week
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