Norwegian oil and gas firm DNO has reported record output in the second quarter of the year following the upgrade of its key Kurdish asset.
In the period, the company produced 138,569 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd), up 76% on the first quarter. The jump was primarily driven by the Tawke field operations in Kurdistan, which in March grew from two to four wells, despite the political unrest in the region.
DNO closed the quarter on positive figures, with a free cash balance of $195million on top of $104million in financial assets, including a 4.7% stake in RAK Petroleum, with the balance in DNO treasury shares.
The company’s net profit for the period totaled $44million on operating revenue of $143million.
“We’ve had feet on the ground in Kurdistan for ten years, including during the recent crisis as well as in past ones, and remain fully and firmly committed to our operations,” said Bijan Mossavar-Rahmani, DNO’s executive chairman.
“The company last quarter celebrated its 10th anniversary as the first Western oil company to explore in Kurdistan by setting three new single day records at the Tawke field: daily production record of 133,192 barrels, daily deliveries to Fish Khabur for onward transfer to Ceyhan of 126,048 barrels and daily local sales of 114,760 barrels.
“Our next challenge is to properly monetize all oil produced at Tawke by tapping international markets.”
In addition to five more wells planned by year-end in Tawke, DNO is also looking to launch an exploration campaign in a new onshore block in Oman and commence exploration and appraisal drilling offshore Tunisia.