(Bloomberg) -- Oil and Natural Gas Corp.’s quarterly profit beat analyst estimates despite a dip in production and weak crude prices.
The state-run company’s net income rose 17% from a year earlier to 119.8 billion rupees ($1.4 billion) in the July-September quarter, according to a stock exchange filing Monday. A Bloomberg survey of analysts had estimated an average profit of 98.96 billion rupees.
The performance was helped by a more than doubling of income from sources other than the company’s core business to 47.66 billion rupees and lower total expenses. ONGC didn’t give details on this so-called other income or the reason for the increase.
India’s biggest explorer, which benchmarks its oil to Brent crude, saw earnings on selling every barrel of crude fall 7.7% on year to $78.33 per barrel. Its profit from gas stayed unchanged because those prices are set by the government. The firm’s standalone oil production was almost flat at 4.6% from a year earlier, while gas output declined 2.1% during the second quarter.
Demand concerns have darkened the outlook for oil producers globally. However, Indian explorers like ONGC, which cater only to the domestic market, are under pressure from the government to boost investments to raise output and help the world’s third-largest oil consumer reduce its dependence on imported crude.
Higher earnings will help the New Delhi-based company, which has an annual capital expenditure plan of around 350 billion rupees, fund its ambitious exploration program.
Revenue declined 3.6% on year to 338.8 billion rupees during the quarter.
©2024 Bloomberg L.P.