(Reuters) - Hungarian oil and gas group MOL posted on Friday a surge in full-year EBITDA at $4.7 billion, from $3.5 billion in 2021, supported by strong upstream and downstream contributions.
The company outperformed its EBITDA target of $4.1 billion to $4.4 billion.
"The robust EBITDA in 2022, even with the extreme high taxes, price caps and regulatory measures in place, gives the possibility to continue our transformational and development journey," Chief Executive Officer Zsolt Hernadi said in a statement.
MOL, which operates refineries in Hungary, Slovakia, and Croatia, reported a net profit of $1.66 billion in 2022, down from $1.75 billion in 2021.
The company posted a quarterly net loss of $106 million, from $351.2 million in the fourth quarter of 2021.
The quarterly upstream EBITDA grew by 8% to $492 million year-on-year.
"It is clear to us that 2023 will be no easier," Hernadi said, adding the war in Ukraine and its consequences on supply security, the unpredictable macro conditions and regulatory measures have brought unprecedented challenges to MOL's employees.
The EBITDA-relevant estimated impact of fuel price regulations and windfall taxes across MOL's core central and eastern Europe region amounted to more than $1.6 billion in 2022, it said.