Tulsa-based ONEOK, Inc. reported higher fourth quarter and full-year 2018 earnings. Its 2018 net income was nearly $1.15 billion compared to $388 million in 2017.
Fourth quarter earnings went up too, reaching $293 million, more than the $63 million reported in the fourth quarter of 2017.
The company’s operating income for the year came to $1.835 billion which was 32 percent more than 2017. Operating income for the fourth quarter jumped 18 percent.
Higher 2018 results were driven primarily by natural gas and natural gas liquids volume growth across its operations, and higher optimization and marketing earnings in the natural gas liquids segment.
The higher profits resulted in a fourth quarter dividend of 86 cents per share or $3.44 per share on an annualized basis. The 86-cent dividend is up 12 percent.
“2018 was an exceptional year for ONEOK, with continued volume growth across our operations and the announcement of more than $5.5 billion of capital-growth projects that will help meet customer needs and the increasing demand for natural gas and NGLs in the U.S. and abroad,” said Terry K. Spencer, ONEOK president and chief executive officer. “We ended the year with a strong balance sheet and the financial capability to fund these projects with no expected equity needs in 2019.
“As we look ahead, 2019 will be a year of project execution, positioning ONEOK for strong earnings growth in 2020,” added Spencer. “With continued production improvements and a large inventory of flared natural gas in the Williston Basin, we expect to immediately benefit from the completion of the Demicks Lake I natural gas processing plant, which we anticipate will start operations nearly full in the fourth quarter 2019. We expect volume to reach approximately 100,000 bpd on our Elk Creek Pipeline in the first quarter of 2020 from Demicks Lake I, third-party processing plants and NGLs currently being railed from the basin.
“The projects we’re placing in service this year and in early 2020 will provide much needed natural gas processing and NGL takeaway capacity, and are expected to drive volume and earnings growth,” said Spencer.
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