Equinor has trimmed planned investments in renewables and low-emission energy and flagged heavy cuts to share buybacks, the company said on Wednesday as it posted a 22% drop in fourth-quarter profit.
The Norwegian energy group's adjusted earnings before tax in the last three months of 2025 fell to $6.2 billion but were still above the $5.93 billion consensus analyst poll compiled by the company.
The company's share price rose 1.2% by 0806 GMT.
Equinor, which is majority owned by the state, said it will maintain capital expenditure of $13 billion in 2026 but cut this to $9 billion next year, primarily from reductions within its power business, which includes renewables, and in its low-carbon solutions division.
Capital spending will be focused on maintaining steady petroleum production in Norway towards 2035 and growth in its international petroleum output while taking a "disciplined" approach to building its integrated power business.
"In 2026, we expect around 3% production growth, up from record levels in 2025. We are taking firm actions to strengthen free cash flow, remain robust towards lower prices and maintain competitive capital distribution," CEO Anders Opedal said in a statement.
Equinor lowered its ambitions on so-called net carbon intensity, measuring how much renewables and non-fossil energy it will produce, to a range of 5-15% for 2030 and 15%-30% for 2035, down from previous targets of 15-20% and 30-40% respectively, citing "changing markets and fewer value-creating opportunities".
The company said it would cut share buybacks to $1.5 billion this year, from $5 billion last year, and raised its quarterly cash dividend to $0.39 per share from $0.37 previously.
(Reuters - Reporting by Nerijus Adomaitis and Nora BuliEditing by Terje Solsvik and David Goodman)
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