Statoil ASA may cut investment plans for the two next years after the sale of assets from the North Sea to Azerbaijan reduced the spending commitments of Norway’s biggest energy company.
The announcement comes after the firm posted company losses.
“It could be lower,” acting chief executive officer Eldar Saetre said today in an interview in Oslo.
“It will be natural to look at it in light of the transactions we’ve made.”
Statoil, which has sold more than $23billion of assets since 2010, will present new investment plans at the Stavanger-based company’s next capital markets update in February, Saetre said.
Statoil in February cut planned annual spending by 8% to about $20billion for the three years through 2016 to counter the erosion of shareholder returns by rising costs.
The company plans to cover rising dividends and investments with cash flow from operations by 2016, helped by an efficiency program designed to save $1.3billion a year. Statoil is 67% owned by the state.
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