China's CNOOC records record profit in the first half of this year on higher oil prices and output
CNOOC Ltd, a Chinese offshore oil-and-gas major, posted a record net profit for the first half of 2012 on Wednesday. Higher oil prices resulting from the Iran War?and increased production helped to boost earnings.
According to a filing at the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, net?profits attributable to investors?rose by 23.4% from 69.5 billion to 85.8 billion ($12.9 billion).
The oil and gas revenue has jumped by 20% to 206.1 billion Yuan.
The average realized oil price of the company rose by 23.6% during this period to $85.49 per barrel, and its average realized gas price increased by 1.3% to $ 8 per thousand cubic feet.
The net oil and gas production reached a new record of 398.7 millions barrels (boe). This includes 275.2 million boe in China which is up 3.3%.
In the first half of this year, crude oil and liquids output increased by 4.8% to 310.3 million barrels. Natural?gas production rose by?0.2% to 517.3 billion cubic feet.
CNOOC’s total cost per boe rose from $28.41 to $29.70 in the first six months.
The company has maintained its production target for the year of 780 to 800 million boe, and capital expenditure guidance between 112 to 122 billion Yuan. The first-half capital expenditure amounted to 62 billion yuan.
CNOOC has made four new discoveries in China. These include Luda 16-1, Qinhuangdao 30, and Wenchang 19,-3, which is located within the Pearl River Mouth Basin.
The company reported that its unconventional gas reserves onshore continued to grow.
CNOOC has secured three new exploration blocks outside of China in Brazil and Indonesia.
CNOOC announced an interim?dividend per share of HK$0.94 - the highest since it was listed.
CNOOC shares listed in Hong Kong closed at HK$24.92 down 0.8%, but are up 17% for the year. This is a significant improvement over Sinopec shares, which have risen by 0.9%. PetroChina shares, meanwhile, rose 18.38%. The Hang Seng Index, the benchmark index, has not changed much over this period. Reporting by Sam Li, Aizhu Chan. Mark Potter edited the report.
(source: Reuters)
