Dutch offshore oil services company SBM Offshore announced a 57% annual surge in shareholder returns to a record $470 million (397.8 million euros) on Thursday and said it will return at least $2.1 billion to investors over six years.
The Amsterdam-based floating production specialist said it would pay $2.57 per share through a $200 million dividend and a $270 million share buyback programme, following strong operational performance and the early sale of its FPSO ONE GUYANA unit to ExxonMobil XOM.N.
Contracted cash flows over the next six years will "more than cover" the plan to boost shareholder returns," financial officer Douglas Wood told Reuters in an interview. "There's even some upside from the contracts that we already have on our order book."
SBM Offshore's directional earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation stood at $1.7 billion in 2025, beating analysts' estimate of $1.65 billion, as per a company poll.
The company uses directional reporting, which books revenue from construction-phase payments before leases begin.
The firm's directional order backlog fell to $31.1 billion at year-end from $35.1 billion a year earlier, as the early sale of FPSO ONE GUYANA reduced revenue expectations.
"If we win new awards, we should start to see the backlog rebuild this year," Wood said.
SBM expects directional revenue at a baseline of around $6.5 billion in 2026, and directional operating profit at around $1.8 billion.
CEO Oivind Tangen, when asked about recent U.S. tariff-induced volatility, said it is reinforcing oil and gas fundamentals in the Atlantic region, making business stronger and more durable.
SBM Offshore operates in the deepwater segment, where production costs per barrel are relatively lower than in other offshore regions, shielding it from oil price volatility.
(1 euro = $1.1818)
(Reuters - Reporting by Hugo Lhomedet and Jerome Terroy in Gdansk; Editing by Mrigank Dhaniwala)
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