Oil and gas group Eni reported fourth-quarter net profit climbed 41.6 per cent to €2.2 billion on strong oil prices.
Eni, Italy's largest company by market value, said in a statement today it would increase its dividend to 90 cents per share, from 75 cents per share last year. It is the first time it has raised dividend for the first time since 2001.
Eni's operating profit for the three-month period came in at €3.7 billion , up 47.3 per cent.
Hydrocarbon production for 2004 climbed 4 per cent to an average of 1.6 million barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd).
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In the quarter, output rose 4.1 per cent to 1.7 million boepd, driven by the start-up of the Wafa gas project in Libya, in line with Eni's fourth-quarter target.