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Monday, 01 December, 2008, 22:10 GMT | more >>

Petrofac numbers beat forecasts



By Upstream staff 

UK player Petrofac beat forecasts to book a 57% rise in 2007 net profit, adding it expected another year of good growth amid strong demand for its services.

The company reported net profit before one-off items of $188.7 million.

Forecasts ranged from $160.7 million to $182 million according to a company poll of 13 analysts.

Petrofac said its backlog of work stood at $4.44 billion at Dec. 31, up 6.4 percent on the year before.

"(This year) has started in the same vein as 2007 closed: with strong demand for our services ... we expect to deliver another year of good growth," it said in a statement.

The firm company it expected to announce contract wins for its Engineering & Construction division in the coming months and predicted net profit margins at the unit this year would be broadly maintained at recent levels.

It said it would make progress towards its medium-term target of a 5% net profit margin in its Operations Services division.

It also saw a busy year for its Energy Developments business, though it added that it now expected the first gas from the Chergui development in Tunisia before the middle of the year, compared with its previous estimate of the first quarter.

Petrofac raised its annual dividend by 85.7% to 16.4 US cents a share.


Monday, 10 March, 2008, 07:43 GMT  | last updated: Monday, 10 March, 2008, 08:09 GMT

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