Ampol has provided an update on the company’s trading conditions for the 2024 financial year.
Consistent with the updates provided in October and late November 2024, Ampol says it expects to deliver an unaudited Group RCOP EBIT of ~$715 million and RCOP EBITDA of ~$1200 million for the financial year, following two years of record performance.
Lytton Refiner Margin update
Lytton Refiner Margin (LRM) for the fourth quarter of the 2024 financial year was US$4.60 per barrel, reflecting the impact of the Fluidised Catalytic Cracking Unit (FCCU) pitstop in November, proactively taken in a period of lower than historical average product cracks.
LRM for the month of December improved to US$6.10 per barrel. Total refinery production for the fourth quarter of 1,542 million litres included a “less favourable” proportion of high value products due to the maintenance work being undertaken during the period.
The FCCU restarted in December and has since been operating as planned after the successful completion of the pitstop.
Group trading update
Looking beyond the one-off operating events at the refinery, Ampol says the full year 2024 provisional result reflects:
- “Consistently strong” performance from the Australia convenience retail business throughout the year.
- “Resilient” performance of the New Zealand segment in challenging economic conditions
- Increased costs incurred in fuels and infrastructure Australia, in the second half, to maintain supply to customers in response to the unplanned outages at Lytton.
- Fuels and infrastructure international performance that continued to reflect the “well supplied” market and reduced volatility, which presented limited “value-creating” opportunities throughout the year.
The audited 2024 financial year results will be provided on 24 February.
