EnQuest UK sticks to production forecast despite first-half losses

EnQuest, an oil company based in the North Sea, stuck to its production forecast for the full year on Wednesday. It was encouraged by its operational strengths despite reporting that it had a loss after tax of $1.25 million due to lower production and higher taxes.

As with its peers, the company is struggling to deal with Britain's extended tax on windfall profits for oil and gas producers. The tax rate has been raised to 78% - one of the highest rates in the world - which has attracted criticism from many industry players.

Amjad Bseisu, CEO of EnQuest, said in a press release that the company is committed to continuing investment in its UK business.

The UK North Sea has been rendered uncompetitive by successive UK governments through their fiscal policies.

To meet the rising demand for power, the company invests in gas exploration and production, along with major energy companies, in Southeast Asia.

EnQuest reported a loss of $173.5 millions after taxes for the six-month period ended June 30 compared to a profit of $30.3 million last year. This was after booking a non-cash adjustments worth $123.9 million related to higher levies.

Analysts at Peel Hunt & J.P.Morgan, however, were positive about the first-half performance of the company and highlighted its robust operations.

The first-half production was 38,257 barrels equivalent to oil per day (boepd), including Vietnam. This is lower than the 42,771 Boepd of last year, due to an outage caused by a third party at EnQuest Magnus' oil field that lasted nearly five weeks.

(source: Reuters)