石油设备网讯 据OGJ网站4月2日休斯敦报道，挪威著名能源研究和商业情报公司雷斯塔能源公司(雷斯塔能源/Rystad Energy)公布的统计数据显示，尽管油价仅从2014年和2015年的大幅下跌中部分恢复，但全球上市的油气勘探和生产（E&P）公司正以前所未有的速度创造自由现金流（FCF）。
去年，全球上市E&P公司的FCF飙升至近3000亿美元，这标志着石油行业巨头“超额利润”的回归。对于这些参与者来说，今年可能会是另一个轰动。
雷斯塔能源上游研究主管埃斯彭•埃林森表示：“尽管油价低得多，但E&P公司仍能实现同样的股东回报，这一事实表明，E&P公司的盈利能力已显著提高。”
埃林森说，雷斯塔能源日前对2010年以来所有上市的E&P公司的全球FCF进行的一项估计分析显示，全球FCF在2011年达到峰值。从2012年到2014年，由于E&P公司承担更多的承诺和投资预算的增加，FCF量有所下降。2015年，由于油价暴跌，FCF量大幅下降。自2015年以来，FCF量已逐渐恢复到我们今天看到的历史最高水平。”
埃林森补充说：“我们对各大石油公司最新年报的分析清楚地表明，大型E&P公司的“超额利润”又回来了。在2018年，在融资活动之前的FCF达到了创纪录的高水平，巨额利润通常用于偿还债务和增加对股东的支付。”
李峻 编译自 OGJ
原文如下：
Rystad Energy: E&P firms, awash in cash, could gain more
The world’s publicly listed oil and gas exploration and production companies are bringing in cash at the best rate ever witnessed, even though oil prices have only partially recovered from the huge drop suffered in 2014 and 2015, according to Rystad Energy.
Free cash flow for public E&P firms skyrocketed last year to nearly $300 billion, marking the return of the “super profit” for industry majors. For these players, this year could turn out to be another blockbuster.
“The fact that E&P companies are able to deliver the same shareholder returns despite much lower oil prices points to an impressive increase in profitability,” says Espen Erlingsen, head of upstream research at Rystad Energy.
A Rystad Energy analysis of estimated global free cash flows (FCF) for all public E&P companies since 2010 shows that FCF peaked in 2011. In the years between 2012 and 2014, FCF declined as E&P companies took on more commitments and investment budgets increased. In 2015, as the oil price collapsed, FCF was reduced considerably. Since 2015, FCF has recovered gradually to the all-time high we see today.
“Our analysis of the latest annual reports from the majors clearly indicates that ‘super profits’ are back for large E&P companies. Free cash flow before financing activities was at a record high in 2018, and the mega profits were typically used to pay down debt and increase payments to shareholders,” Erlingsen added.
