BP reported yesterday that the underlying replacement cost profit before interest and tax for its lubricants business declined 35% in 2020 due to impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The London-based company, the world’s third-largest lube supplier, offered solace, noting that sales in what it described as growth markets recovered to 2019 levels during the second half of 2020 as governments in those countries eased restrictions.
The lubricants unit, which markets finished lubes around the world under its Castrol and BP brands, posted an underlying replacement cost profit of $818 million before interest and tax for the 12 months of 2020, down from $1.3 million in 2019. Sales volumes were off by 15%.
For the fourth quarter the business made a profit of $262 million, down from $333 million during the same period of 2019.
The company said it worked to expand its service offerings in 2020, expanding the number of independent Castrol-branded automobile workshops from 4,000 to 28,000 globally.
Overall BP reported a loss of $20.3 billion in 2020, compared to a profit of $4 billion in 2019. Its performance did improve significantly as the year progressed as it posted a profit of $1.3 billion for the fourth quarter.