Ljubljana, 16 November (STA) - Energy group Petrol made EUR 68.8m in net profit in the fist nine months of the year, up 14% compared to the same period last year, as sales revenue rose by 18% to EUR 3.91bn. On the other hand, operating profit was slightly down, by 2%, to EUR 85.5m.
Retail merchandise business is an increasingly important segment for the energy group, as revenue from the business rose by 11% to EUR 445.9m in the first nine months compared to the same period last year, follows from the financial statements published on Friday.
Petrol also sold 2.5 million tonnes of oil products, up 1% from the same period last year, with the Slovenian market accounting for 1.23 million tonnes or nearly half of the sold products.
The group sold 577,100 tonnes of oil products in South European markets, up 1% year-on-year, and 691,400 tonnes in EU markets, which is on a par with the first nine months of last year.
The sales of liquefied petroleum gas were up 5% to 119,400 tonnes. The sales of natural gas amounted to 13.2 TWh, and the sales of electricity to 13.7 TWh.
At the end of September, Petrol had 495 service stations, of which 317 were in Slovenia and the rest in countries of former Yugoslavia.
The core company, Petrol, generated EUR 3.05bn in sales revenue, up 11%. Net profit was up by a fifth to EUR 59.3m, while operating profit dropped by 10% to EUR 65.6m.