BERLIN, Austrian energy group OMV missed expectations for fourth-quarter core earnings because of lower crude prices, but proposed a 22% dividend increase for 2022 in line with its commitment to offer attractive payouts.

OMV on Thursday posted clean current cost of supplies (CCS) earnings before interest and tax (EBIT), which exclude special items and inventory gains or losses, of 2.1 billion euros ($2.31 billion) for the October to December period.

That was 5% more than the same period last year but down 40% from the previous quarter. Analysts had expected CCS EBIT of 2.34 billion euros.

OMV proposed an ordinary dividend of 2.80 euros per share for 2022, subject to shareholder approval, in addition to a special dividend of 2.25 euros per share it had already announced.

OMV, which is transforming from a traditional oil and gas firm to a supplier of fuels, chemicals and materials, said production decreased by 106,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boe/d) to 385,000 boe/d in the fourth quarter, mainly because of the change in the consolidation method of its operations in Russia.

A strong focus on low-cost oil and gas fields in the country has helped OMV rebound financially in recent years.

Following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, the company has been seeking to distance itself from Russia. Since March, Russian volumes have not been included in the production numbers.

The company said it had fully written off its stake in the Siberian Yuzhno-Russkoye gas field, once a key element of its growth strategy, with a final charge of 432 million euros.

OMV forecast the average Brent crude price in 2023 will fall to $80 per barrel from $101 in 2022. The average realised gas price is seen at 35 euros per megawatt hour, down from 54 euros per MWh last year.