Vopak Raises 2026 Outlook After New Rotterdam Gas Tank Starts Operations
Key Facts
The company said in its third-quarter results statement that demand across its network remained strong during the first nine months of the year. It attributed the higher outlook to business performance and contributions from growth projects. The estimates assume no significant changes in current market conditions, it added.
Proportional operating free cash flow was 671 million euros in the first nine months of 2026, compared with 644 million euros in the same period of 2025. Vopak said cash flow rose 6% year on year after excluding the effects of currency translation and asset disposals. By contrast, net profit attributable to ordinary shareholders fell to 328 million euros from 407 million euros a year earlier. The company attributed most of the decline to a 111 million euro dilution gain from the listing of its joint venture AVTL and a 22 million euro commercial settlement gain, both recorded in 2025. The results show a divergence between improving operating cash flow and lower comparative net profit.
The proportional occupancy rate was 91% from the start of the year through the end of the third quarter, the same level recorded through the end of the second quarter. The company linked this level to continued strong demand for infrastructure services. But it said volatile market conditions reduced activity at some terminals while supporting stronger demand at others. This reflects the varying impact of market conditions across its operating network. Overall demand across the network remained strong during the first nine months of the year, the company said.
At the Gate LNG terminal in the Netherlands, Vopak put its fourth tank into operation, adding 180,000 cubic metres of storage capacity. The company said the tank has been operating since 1 October, following three years of construction completed on time and within budget. The terminal expansion adds 4 billion cubic metres a year to regasification capacity, bringing total capacity to 20 billion cubic metres a year. The company said the new capacity is backed by a long-term take-or-pay agreement. When the project began in 2023, Vopak said the new capacity had already been leased under long-term commercial agreements, with operations expected to start in the second half of 2026.
Vopak is continuing a multiyear share buyback programme; the company said in its results that 75% of the first 100 million euro tranche had been completed by 30 October 2026. The buyback adds to the financial performance indicators the company presented alongside operating and cash flow results. At upcoming Gate projects, work is under way on the fourth jetty, which the company expects to begin loading and bunkering small vessels by the end of 2028. The terminal also launched a non-binding call for expressions of interest on 31 August 2026 for potential future loading capacity at the proposed fifth jetty. The company links these steps to enabling expansion and meeting rising demand for cleaner marine fuels.
The company’s outlook assumes a euro-to-dollar exchange rate of 1.15 in 2026, compared with a previous assumption of 1.14. Vopak said its outlook remains exposed to market uncertainty and currency movements. The company is scheduled to publish its 2026 full-year results on 17 February 2027. The release date follows a year in which the company expects growth projects to contribute to performance, while it continues to monitor market conditions that it said affect terminal activity in different ways. The annual results will be the next announced milestone in its financial calendar.