- New record profit driven by coal prices driven up by war in Ukraine, supported by energy trading earnings
- Dividend doubled including 'top-up' payout, with more buybacks also to come
Glencore's (GLEN) strategy of holding on to coal assets and its legacy as a barnstorming trading house have combined to drive it to record profits in 2022, as global conditions turned in its favour.
The company’s adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda) figure of $34bn (£28bn) was driven by both the significant uptick in coal prices, as power generators shifted to the fossil fuel after gas prices soared last year following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and first-half trading profits also linked to the war. Margins were also helped by Glencore buying out the stakes of BHP (BHP) and Anglo American (AAL) at the Cerrejon complex in Colombia.