Record breaking quarter for Beach Petroleum
Posted: 28 April 2006
The first contributions from its maiden offshore production in Australia – in Bass Strait - have powered Top 10 listed oil and gas producer and explorer, Beach Petroleum Limited, to a record quarter for the three months to 31 March, 2006.
The performance is in addition to Beach’s two new gas discoveries during the quarter on the western flank of the onshore Cooper Basin and first development work on Beach’s 40 per cent interest in the Tipton West coal seam project in Queensland.
Beach Petroleum today announced record oil sales for the latest period of 551 thousands barrels of oil equivalent (kboe) – more than double the previous corresponding quarter, and the preceding December 2005 quarter’s 259 kboe.
At a 9 per cent higher average net oil price of A$87.62 per barrel of oil equivalent (boe), revenue climbed to a record A$48.3 million – the highest for any quarter in Beach Petroleum’s modern history and 133 per cent higher than the A$16.9 million outcome of the previous corresponding period.
“Driving the increase are the Company’s first oil sales from our 50 er cent interest in the Basker oilfield, 90 kilometres offshore Lakes Entrance,” Beach Petroleum’s Managing Director, Mr Reg Nelson, said today.
“The fact that Basker, in its first full reporting period, immediately contributes just over half our total production underpins the value of our current strategy to spread our future performance profile and risk over a larger number of assets,” Mr Nelson said.
“The immediate success of the first stage of Basker positions Beach on track to treble our production in line with previous market forecasts, to in excess of three million barrels in 2007,” he said.
Beach Petroleum also announced in its March quarterly report released today:
- Record total production of 483 kbbls, a 41 per cent stronger result than the previous record of 343 kboe for the immediate preceding December 2005 period
- The two Basker shipments delivered a net entitlement to Beach of 325 kboe
- Revenue from the Basker deliveries contributed A$29.3 million at a realised price of over A$90 per barrel to the record A$48.3 million revenue result for the March period
- Full field production from the Basker and Manta fields is on schedule for commencement in October
- The overall realised price for the 2006 quarter of A$87.62 compared to the 2005 March quarter figure of A$63.70 per barrel
- Production from the Company’s historic flagship production and revenue generator, the Cooper Eromanga Basin, remained strong at 226 kbbl
- Development drilling has commenced at the Company’s 40 per cent owned Tipton West coal seam gas project in Queensland with first gas sales targeted for early 2007
- New Cooper Basin discoveries in the Cooper Basin in SA included the Udacha-1 and Middleton-1 gas wells and the successful Christies-4 appraisal oil well in the same province.
Since the end of the March quarter, Beach has added the Harpoono-2 and Silver Sands-1 oil discoveries in SA to its production arsenal and upgraded reserves at Tipton West by 50 petajoules (PJ) to 174 PJ of which Beach is entitled to 70 PJ.
Posted by Richard Price, Editor, EnergyME.com
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