Energy Trader Gunvor Posts Record $2.36 Billion Net Profit in 2022

(Reuters) — Gunvor Group posted a record net profit of $2.36 billion in 2022 with a strong performance across all trading desks, the energy trader said in a statement on Wednesday.

Gunvor's rivals also had a bumper year amid high price volatility and as Russia's war in Ukraine reshaped global commodity flows, with Vitol and Mercuria previously posting record net profits of $15 billion and $2.98 billion, respectively.

Gunvor's trading volumes fell to 165 million tonnes from 240 million tonnes in 2021, due primarily to reduced natural gas trading, but it forecast a rebound in the coming year.

"The performance was broad-based across all geographies and all desks, including refining and shipping," Gunvor said in a statement.

Gross profit hit $4.88 billion, but the net result included legal provisions and an impairment related to a minority, non-controlling investment in the Ust-Luga Oil Products Terminal in Russia.

A former Gunvor employee pleaded guilty in 2021 to what U.S. federal prosecutors called a scheme to bribe Ecuadorean government officials to win business from state-controlled oil company Petroecuador.

The U.S. Department of Justice and Commodity Futures Trading Commission have continued investigating the firm and Gunvor expects to pay a fine.

In a filing on Wednesday, Gunvor said it booked a $200 million provision for the Ecuador case.

Equity spiked to a record $5.286 billion in 2022 from $3.079 billion a year earlier on reports Gunvor was in talks with strategic investors, including the UAE's Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. (ADNOC), to sell a stake.

Industry sources familiar with the matter said ADNOC has been looking to buy Gunvor, or at least a stake, since last year. Gunvor CEO Torbjorn Tornqvist has said it is "no secret" the pair were in contact.

The sector's strong performance has carried over to the new year, with commodities trader Trafigura beating its previous record to make around $3.5 billion in profit in its first fiscal quarter.

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