By Dominic Chopping


Equinor ASA on Wednesday announced an increased shareholder payout after posting higher-than-expected second-quarter earnings as it continued to boost gas production while oil and gas prices remained high.

The Norwegian energy major, which is 67%-owned by the Norwegian state, said adjusted earnings--its preferred measure--rose to $17.59 billion from $4.64 billion, against $16.86 billion expected in a company-compiled consensus.

The company reported a net profit of $6.76 billion from $1.94 billion a year earlier, against the $5.15 billion expected in a FactSet poll.

Revenue more than doubled to $36.39 billion, it said.

Total equity production slipped to 1.984 million barrels of oil equivalent a day, compared with the 2.003 million barrels of oil equivalent a day analysts had expected.

The company maintained its quarterly dividend at $0.20, but increased it extraordinary dividend that it had planned to pay for the second and third quarter to $0.50 from $0.20. It also said it will initiate a third tranche of share buybacks of $1.83 billion and increase the buyback program for 2022 to up to $6 billion from up to $5 billion.

Organic capital expenditure and production guidance was maintained, it said.


Write to Dominic Chopping at dominic.chopping@wsj.com


(END) Dow Jones Newswires

07-27-22 0140ET