Results Round-up

The Co-operative Group returned to profit in 2014, as an overhaul in governance saw the company put a series of scandals behind it.

The group swung to a profit before member payments – the equivalent of pre-tax profit in a PLC - of £124m in the year to January, compared with a £255m loss the year before, while revenue declined 3% to £9.4bn.

Robust performances in the food and funerals divisions were offset by losses in the group’s general insurance arm, leading to a 2.8% decline in underlying operating profit to £172m.

In a statement released on Thursday, the Co-op said it had acquired 82 new food convenience stores and refurbished over 700 stores during the year, adding it was aiming to add a further 100 in 2015.

The group, which reduced its debt by 42% to £808m, was left in turmoil when Euan Sutherland quit as chief executive after details of his pay package were leaked to the media in 2014.

Oil producer Gulf Keystone Petroleum said its annual loss widened exponentially as it was still owed approximately $100m (£67.3m) for crude exports.

The Kurdistan-focused group saw its annual after tax loss jump from $32m to $248.2m, driven by a dispute over exports with the Kurdistan regional government, which still owes the London-listed group $100m.

The group, which is in negotiations with a number of parties over sales of assets or a takeover, said its operation in Kurdistan remained solid, with export deliveries and production uninterrupted throughout 2014.

Revenue from continuing operations jumped from $6.7m to $38.6m but it was largely offset by soaring costs, which went from $11.9m to $81.8m.

In 2014, gross production amounted to approximately 6.5m barrels compared to 496,921 barrels in the previous year, with a first production of 40,000 barrels of oil per day reached in December.

Gulf Keystone added that since the end of its financial year, it had received a $26m “pre-payment” for oil sales from its Shaikan field.