Seplat Energy Plc reported profit in the sum of N13.86 billion January to September, a comeback from a loss position in the corresponding period of 2020, for which it incurred a loss of N33.7 per cent.
That implies a 141.3 per cent, according to the oil driller’s financials issued Thursday.
Nigeria’s biggest quoted oil and gas company had a tempestuous year last year, with the global oil market at the mercy of the twin bugbears of the pandemic outbreak and a crash that dragged prices of crude to unprecedented lows in April.
But as economies reopen from lockdowns imposed to curb Covid’s spread, fuel demand for industrial operations and transport is aiding a rapid price recovery that has pushed, for instance, Brent crude to $82.97 per barrel as of 12:58 West Africa Time (WAT) on Thursday, compared to an annual average of $41.96 for last year.
That helped the revenue of Seplat, listed in London and Lagos, up by more than one-third from N135.6 billion to N182.7.
Also strengthening earnings was a jump of 120.3 per cent in other income, which rode on a more than double rise in income from underlift, the shortfall of crude lifted below Seplat’s share of production in lease areas.
Profit before tax stood at N38.6 billion, 184.9 per cent higher than last year level.
“Production has recovered strongly since the outage at Forcados Oil Terminal (FOT) and we have been averaging nearly 33kbopd liquids throughout October,” said CEO Roger Brown.
“Now that production has normalised, we expect production to be in the range 48-50 kboepd for the year, provided uptime on the Forcados Pipeline and FOT remains above the budgeted 80 per cent.”
Last December, Access Bank sealed the Lagos-based head office of the energy firm on the strength of court order for debt recovery on a third party loan taken by Cardinal Drilling Nigeria Limited, a subsidiary of Seplat, from Diamond Bank (now part of Seplat after a 2019 merger) in 2012.
The company said it had made a negotiated settlement with the lender.
Shares in Seplat were trading down 5.43 per cent at 86.06 pence per unit in London at 13:58 WAT on Thursday. It was quoted at N731.5 in Lagos at that time but yet to see any movement.
SOURCE: premiumtimesng.com