Lisbon, April 27, 2026 (Lusa) — Portuguese oil and energy group, Galp, ended the first quarter of the year with an adjusted profit of €272 million, a 41% increase compared with the same period last year, driven by higher oil and natural gas production in Brazil.
Between January and March, earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) also rose by 41% to €943 million compared to the same period in 2025, the oil company said in a statement to the Portuguese Securities Market Commission (CMVM), the market regulator.
Around 73% of this figure came from the upstream business unit – exploration, development and production of oil and natural gas – “whose EBITDA rose by 78%, benefiting from the combined effect of a 23% increase in oil and natural gas production and the rise in the average Brent price”, it explains.
The oil company explains that this growth was supported by the start of production at the Campo de Bacalhau project in Brazil, where it holds a 20% stake, with average daily oil and gas production in the first quarter of 2026 amounting to 129,000 barrels, compared to 104,000 barrels in the same quarter last year. Meanwhile, the average Brent price rose by 7% to US$81.1 per barrel.
“Galp has made a solid start to the year, despite increased market volatility and global uncertainty, thanks to the resilience of its assets and disciplined operational execution,” said Maria João Carioca, co-CEO of Galp.
“This strength has enabled us to continue developing projects, whilst also ensuring the country’s energy supply during critical moments such as the storms at the start of the year and the disruption to supply chains caused by the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz,” she added.
Regarding the Sines refinery, she highlights that "the operational continuity and reliability of the refinery, which underwent a 50-day scheduled shutdown in the previous quarter, the longest in its history, enabled the Industrial & Midstream unit [refining, transport and storage of oil and gas] to capitalise on the rise in international refining margins from March onwards, offsetting the impact of the bad weather that affected the country in the previous two months and which limited the supply of crude oil by sea during that period".
"Despite an 80% increase in natural gas trading on international markets, and a doubling of the impact of refined product exports – particularly petrol — this unit’s EBITDA fell by 9% to €198 million due to the accounting impact of rising petroleum product prices, which is immediately reflected in the costs of the Energy Management unit [which manages oil sales], but is deferred on the product sales side to customers,” she explains.
This effect, known as a time lag, had a negative impact of around €130 million, meaning that the contribution of domestic market activities to Galp’s adjusted net profit for the quarter was nil. It was international activity that accounted for the group’s entire EBITDA.
Net results under International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), which reflect the company’s accounting profit, “resulted in losses of €111 million due to changes in the value of derivative instruments used for risk hedging,” she explains.
In the other areas of operation, EBITDA in the Commercial segment rose by 37% to €84 million, driven by the business segment in Spain, whilst in Renewables there was a 21% increase in energy sales due to the rise in installed capacity in the Iberian Peninsula.
By March, investment totalled €201 million, a reduction compared to the 295 million recorded in the same period of 2025, explained by the decrease in capital requirements for upstream projects, which nevertheless accounted for half of the investment in the quarter.
"Investment in industrial projects for the production of advanced biofuels (SAF and HVO) and green hydrogen in Sines – both pioneers at European level – rose by 17% year-on-year to €51 million," she adds.
SCR / MYAL // AYLS
Lusa
