Oil Search’s Revenue Surges as PNG LNG Recovers

Papua New Guinea-focused Oil Search’s revenue surged in the July-September quarter (3Q) as the PNG LNG project recovered from issues relating to an earthquake earlier in the year, the company said October 23.

“Oil Search reported a strong third quarter result, delivering the Company’s highest quarterly revenue since the fourth quarter of 2014, and approached the end of 2018 in a robust financial position,” Oil Search’s managing director Peter Botten said.

Its 3Q total revenue stood at $479.9 million, up 81% from $262.8mn in the 2Q, while sales grew 60% to 7.44mn barrels of oil equivalent from 4.65mn boe and production was up 39% at 7.53mn boe from 5.40mn boe.

The production level was close to the pre-earthquake level of 7.6mn boe achieved in the 4Q last year.

“The PNG LNG Project achieved annualised production rates of 8.9mn metric tonnes per annum in the quarter, 9.0mn mt per annum for September and a daily rate of 9.2mn mt per annum, the highest rates since the Project came onstream in 2014. Oil Search-operated production continued to improve and is expected to be progressively restored over the coming months,” it said.

Based on the strong PNG LNG performance since the recommencement of production after the earthquake, Oil Search now expects to produce between 25-26mn boe for 2018, rather than the previous guidance of 24-26mn boe, it said.

Oil Search, which was established in PNG in 1929, has more than 98% of its assets in PNG, where it operates all of the country’s producing oil fields, and has a 29% interest in the PNG LNG project, operated by ExxonMobil (33.2%).