Italian oil and gas group Eni has lowered its output target for the year due to lower gas production in certain countries.

The major, which reported third-quarter net profit that beat expectations, said it expected oil and gas production to grow about 3% this year, against previous guidance of 4%.

But it said the lower output would have a negligible impact on cash flow and confirmed guidance for cash neutrality, including dividend payments, at $55 per barrel.

“[Our performance] allowed us to record cash flow from operations ... 35 percent higher than the previous quarter with a Brent price broadly unchanged,” CEO Claudio Descalzi said.

Adjusted net profit in the quarter rose to 1.39 billion euros (US$1.6 billion), boosted by oil prices, from 0.23 billion euros a year ago. That was above an analyst consensus provided by the company of 1.02 billion euros.

The state-controlled major confirmed its capital spending for the year at 7.7 billion euros ($8.8 billion).