Twenty U.S. Major Energy Producers Report $17.4 Billion of Net Income in Q3 2010

“Financial News for Major Energy Producers (the News)” is a report on the recent financial performance of major U.S. energy producers.

Twenty U.S. majors collectively reported $17.4 billion of net income in the third quarter of 2010, which was 32-percent more than the $13.2 billion these companies reported for the third quarter of 2009 (but 41 percent less than their third-quarter average over the 2005-2009 period, after adjusting for inflation).This percentage increase in the third quarter of 2010 (Q310) was primarily because net income in Q309 was unusually low.

The leading operations, in terms of net income, for the U.S. majors during the third quarter of 2010 were foreign oil and natural gas production, U.S. oil and natural gas production, and worldwide chemicals, which generated contributions to net income of $9.6 billion, $5.7 billion, and $1.6 billion, respectively. All of the lines of business of the U.S. majors tracked by the News recorded higher earnings in the third quarter of 2010 than during the third quarter of 2009.

Worldwide oil and gas production income increased 16 percent ($2.3 billion) relative to Q309, as a small increase in U.S. income was magnified by a larger increase in returns from foreign operations. However, relative to the third-quarter average for 2005-2009 of $24.5 billion, Q310 was 30 percent lower.

U.S. oil and gas production operations generated 15 percent more income than a year earlier, but 36 percent less than the average for the third quarter of 2005-2009 of $8.8 billion.

The data presented are for the July through September time period of 2009 and 2010 and are collected from company press releases. The next issue of the News, covering the October through December time period of 2009 and 2010, will be released in February 2011.

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Source:  U.S. Energy Information Administration, January 6, 2011;