Dutch producer NAM reported April 13 a loss of €315 ($374)mn on its 2020 business, owing to very low gas prices and demand in a mild year and one-off costs and depreciations. It said late March that the government's calculation of the increase in the bill for damages relating to earthquakes was not explained, despite making several appeals for clarity.

It said its accountant "also asked critical questions about the lack of underlying information in the context of the statutory audit of the annual accounts. Nevertheless, we have already paid all accounts, except for one outstanding at the end of last year."

However, the financial result, excluding earthquake costs and one-off depreciation of fixed assets, was still positive, the Shell-ExxonMobil operating company said.

NAM began this year with a cash position of €3.8bn. The year also began with "significantly higher oil and gas prices, which are now back at the level of before the COVID-19 crisis. In addition, the implemented reorganisations and other cost-saving measures have a further favorable effect on the liquidity and financial health of NAM," it said.

It said its portfolio "of financially robust oil fields and small gas fields on land and at sea continues to play an important role in the context of security of supply in the Netherlands. This portfolio also provides economic and social benefits through the taxes we pay and the employment it generates. Finally, natural gas produced in the Netherlands has a significantly lower CO2 footprint than imported natural gas."