Another earnings season is just around the corner and major oil companies are flagging a hit from lower energy prices. Brent oil prices averaged $66.71 a barrel during the April-June quarter, an 11% decline from the prior quarter, while natural gas prices were off 9%.
British oil major BP said on Friday it expects an impact from lower oil and gas prices, even as its output is set to be higher than expected.
BP, which reports on August 5, said it got $67.88 a barrel for its oil during the quarter, down from $75.73 a barrel the prior quarter. It expects its gas trading results to be average.
Rival Shell, which reports on July 31, is expecting weakness from its gas trading and chemicals business, which suffered unplanned maintenance at its Monaca polymer plant in the United States.
U.S. oil major Exxon Mobil has also signaled that lower oil and gas prices will hit its second-quarter profits by roughly $1.5 billion versus the prior quarter. Wall Street is anticipating adjusted earnings of $1.53 per share, versus $1.76 last quarter.
U.S. oil company Occidental Petroleum Corp warned on Monday that its U.S. Gulf of Mexico output was curtailed during the second quarter due to third-party constraints, extended maintenance and schedule-related delays.
In other news, on Friday the U.S. Department of Energy said it would provide Exxon Mobil up to 1 million barrels of crude oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve for its Baton Rouge refinery after a zinc contamination to Mars crude.
Exxon had told counterparts it would not buy the medium sour crude until the issue was resolved, Arathy Somasekhar reported last week. The SPR oil was provided to keep fuel supplies stable in Louisiana and on the Gulf Coast. Exxon will resupply the SPR at no cost to the taxpayer.
U.S. oil major Chevron said the contamination came following the start-up of a new offshore well. Chevron is working to resolve the issues and does not expect an impact to its current production guidance.
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