Ampol Limited has provided an update on the Group trading conditions for the first half of the 2024 financial year and on the second quarter Lytton Refiner Margin.
Group trading update
Ampol expects to deliver an unaudited Group RCOP EBIT of $500-510 million and RCOP EBITDA of ~$735-745 million for 1H 2024, following two years of record performance. This provisional result was underpinned by EBIT growth in Convenience Retail and New Zealand and resilient EBIT in F&I Australia. More specifically:
- Convenience Retail grew EBIT year on year, largely driven by a favourable mix of premium fuels during the period, reflecting the quality of Ampol’s retail network and market positioning. Shop income was broadly consistent with the prior year.
- The New Zealand segment also delivered higher EBIT reflecting the strength of its diversified channels to market together with the benefits of Ampol’s integrated supply chain.
- In F&I (Ex-Lytton), F&I Australia EBIT was broadly in line with the first half of last year as modest growth in diesel volumes and improved integrated margins more than offset softer retail volumes through third party channels.
F&I International EBIT finished down in the half largely due to the market being well supplied, particularly in the second quarter, which reduced short-term physical sales opportunities and margins.
2Q Lytton Refiner Margin update
LRM for the second quarter of the 2024 financial year was US$8.81 per barrel reflecting lower product cracks during the quarter and the short-term lag between when crude is priced and when it is consumed in production (typically ~2 months).
The 2Q 2024 LRM compared favourably with the US$5.66 per barrel realised in the prior corresponding quarter which was impacted by the unplanned outage of the Fluidised Catalytic Cracking Unit. While total refinery production for the second quarter of 1,420 million litres was lower than the same time last year, it included a more favourable proportion of high value products (1,366 million litres vs 1,229 million litres).
Further details of the audited 2024 first half financial results will be provided in the 2024 First Half Results Release which is scheduled for release on 19 August 2024.
