Abu Dhabi’s TAQA Q1 Profit Falls 6.6% On Low Oil Prices

Abu Dhabi National Energy Co (TAQA), the state-owned oil explorer and power supplier, said on Wednesday that first-quarter net profit dropped 6.6 per cent from a year earlier to Dhs256 million ($69.8 million) because of low oil prices.

Total revenues tumbled 29 per cent to Dhs5.13 billion because of the plunge of oil prices since last June.

The company received a Dhs553 million tax credit during the quarter from a one-off tax rate change for its operations in Britain’s North Sea, which prevented it from posting a loss for the quarter.

Its global oil and gas production stayed steady at 157.9 million barrels of oil equivalent per day, flat from a year earlier, despite a cut in capital spending, TAQA said. Production in Britain and the Netherlands rose, offset by a slight decrease in North American output.

Revenues from selling electricity and water fell 6.6 per cent during the quarter to Dhs2.10 billion.

Because of cheap oil, TAQA aims to reduce its 2015 capital spending by 40 per cent to Dhs3.8 billion.