For the quarter, the company’s adjusted profit dropped 28% to EUR2.08bn compared to EUR2.87bn in the year ago quarter.
For the full year, sales were EUR131.33bn, 27% down compared to EUR179.98bn in the prior year quarter. Adjusted profit for the year was EUR7.78bn, a decline of 44% compared to EUR13.92bn for the previous year quarter.
Christophe de Margerie, CEO of Total, said: “The 2009 oil and gas market environment was marked by a sharp decline in the demand for oil, natural gas and refined products. Crude oil prices, nonetheless, rebounded during the year to average 61.7 $/b thanks to the support from OPEC reductions and the anticipation by the market of an economic recovery.
“In contrast, natural gas spot prices remained depressed and refining margins fell to historically low levels, under pressure from significant overcapacity. In chemicals, despite strong demand for polymers in China, the environment was hurt by low margins and a sharp drop in demand in OECD markets.”
He added, “In the fourth quarter, thanks to a 6% increase in upstream production, higher oil prices and downstream results that remained slightly positive despite very weak refining margins, adjusted net income rose to 3.1 B$, an increase of 15% compared to the third quarter.”
In the upstream, in 2009 five projects started production in Nigeria, the Gulf of Mexico, Angola, Qatar and Yemen. The group also approved the investment to launch the Surmont Phase II project in Canada, and, to further strengthen its portfolio, entered into a number of joint ventures, notably with Chesapeake and Cobalt in the US, Novatek in Russia, and Sonatrach in Algeria.
In addition, cost reduction plans launched in late 2008 led to an 8% reduction in operating costs and allowed the company to maintain its technical costs at 15.4 $/boe, the same level as in 2008.
Mr Margerie said, “The downstream and chemicals segments continued to implement plans to adapt to the particularly difficult conditions they faced in 2009 that included reducing capacity to restore profitability to these activities in an environment undergoing profound transformation.
“The measures taken in the modernization of the refining and petrochemicals site at Normandy demonstrate the group’s will to be socially responsible as it adapts its industrial operations to structural changes in the market.”
