Declining production hits PPL’s bottom line

Pakistan Petroleum Ltd (PPL) has posted a weaker set of full‑year numbers after a year marked by falling field output and softer crude prices – an uncomfortable combination for an upstream company that earns on barrels and molecules lifted. For the twelve months to 30 June 2025, profit after tax fell 19.0% to Rs92.0 billion, translating into earnings per share of Rs33.8 versus Rs42.0 a year earlier. Full‑year sales slipped 16.0% to Rs242.5 billion as both oil and gas production nudged lower across the portfolio. The company paired its announcement with a fourth‑quarter cash dividend of Rs2.5 per share, bringing the FY25 payout to Rs7.5.

The core operational story is straightforward: production declined. PPL’s average oil output fell 10.0% to 10.2 k barrels per day, while gas output also dropped about 10.0% to 480 mmcfd. Layer on a weaker crude tape – Arab Light averaged $75.8 per barrel in FY25 against $87.0 in FY24 – and the top line was always going to be under pressure. Nasheed Malik, an analyst at Arif Habib Ltd, an investment bank, attributes the 16.0% revenue contraction largely to this dual hit of lower volumes and lower prices, a pattern that is also evident in 4QFY25, when revenue fell 19.0% year‑on‑year and 19.0% quarter‑on‑quarter to Rs51.8 billion.