Noble sells oil-liquids business, warns of loss
SINGAPORE
Embattled commodities trader Noble Group announced on Oct. 23 the sale of its American oil-liquids business to Vitol Group and warned of a third-quarter loss of up to $1.25 billion.
Singapore-listed Noble said in a statement the sale to Vitol, the world’s largest independent oil trader, should generate proceeds of $582 million, and is the latest move to pay off debts as the firm fights to survive.
The once-mighty company has been hammered since 2015 as plunging commodity prices hit its bottom line while it has also suffered a ratings downgrade and allegations of irregular accounting practices.
Noble said in a statement that it expects a total net loss in the quarter ending September 30 of between $1.1 billion and $1.25 billion, after reporting a heavy loss of $1.75 billion in the second quarter.
“The operating environment continues to be challenging for the group and this impacted performance in (the third quarter of) 2017,” Noble said. Noble’s shares resumed trading after being halted on Oct. 20 pending the announcement of the sale, and slipped more than 10 percent to 34 Singapore cents.
