Aramco base oil unit Luberef’s Q2 net profit up 4% on lower expenses

DUBAI: Saudi oil giant Aramco’s base oil subsidiary reported a small jump in second-quarter profit on Sunday, mainly on lower income tax expenses and zakat, or charitable deductions, it said in a bourse statement, despite a 22% drop in sales.

Net profit at Saudi Aramco Base Oil Company, known as Luberef, rose 3.97% to 454.85 million riyals ($121.28 million) in the quarter, while revenue dropped 21.8% to 2.6 billion riyals, from 3.3 billion riyals in the second quarter of 2022.

The company, which listed 30% of its shares in an IPO in December, said the rise in net profit was due to a “decrease in zakat and income tax expenses due to Luberef being subjected to zakat only after its listing.”

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Luberef reported a first half net profit of 900.5 million riyals from 740.1 million riyals a year earlier, despite a decrease in revenue of almost 30%. It said the increase was due to lower expenses as well as higher base oil crack margins.