BP PLC MILAN (Reuters) - Italian oil major Eni (>> Eni SpA) will cut capital spending this year by 20 percent after posting a fourth-quarter net loss, hit by writedowns largely related to the plunge in oil prices.
Eni said its overall net loss in the quarter of 8.46 billion euros ($9.36 billion) was a result of the structural weakness of the oil market, which had undermined profitability and asset values, as well as writedowns on its stake in oil contractor Saipem (>> Saipem SpA) and chemical business Versalis.
On a standalone basis the state-controlled company said its adjusted net loss in the last three months of 2015 was 0.2 billion euros.
Production, meanwhile, jumped 14 percent to 1.88 million barrels per day, the highest level recorded by Eni in the past five years.
Weaker oil prices driven by a global supply glut have undermined revenues across the industry and prompted drastic cuts to investment by companies far and wide.
The world's largest oil company, ExxonMobil (>> Exxon Mobil Corporation), this month posted its smallest quarterly profit in more than a decade, while BP's (>> BP plc) 2015 loss was its biggest ever.
Eni confirmed it would pay a dividend of 0.8 euros per share on 2015 results.
(Reporting by Stephen Jewkes; Editing by David Goodman)
