North Sea oil producer Wintershall is to spend more than £3billion on increasing oil and gas production over the next five years, the German firm has confirmed.
The company saw increased production from its North Sea and European operations more than compensate for the problems caused by the ongoing crisis in Libya.
“The good results in 2013 form part of a continuing successful decade in which we have increased oil and gas production by four per cent a year on average, ” said chief executive Rainer Steel.
Net income at the BASF-owned German firm climbed to £1.5billion last year, up from just over £1billion a year earlier. Sales were up 16 percent to £12.4billion.
““We are on course and want to continue growing while adding value,” said Steele.
Eight of the company’s 20 exploration and appraisal wells turned up oil and gas last year, with the Wintershall-operated Asha Noor find in the North Sea opening up a new reservoir.
Drilling on the Ockley and Bonneville wells, on the UK Continental Shelf, proved successful, while work on a concession off Qatar confirmed more than 450million barrels worth of oil.
Last year the firm sold off more than a dozen UK North Sea licences to ambitious Hungarian group MOL for £230million, but picked up six new blocks on the UKCS in the latest licencing round. It also made a major move into the Norwegian North Sea after a $1.4billion asset swap with Statoil.
“Our growth strategy focuses on expanding our oil and gas production in our core regions Europe, Russia, North Africa, South America and the Middle East,” said Steele.
The company has shut down its operations in Libya since last July, as strikes and ongoing civil disruption in the country impacted on oil and gas production.
“At the moment it is unclear when the export blockade will be lifted,” said Steele. “But we do expect to be able to resume onshore production in Libya.”
Wintershall warned it expects sales to drop for 2014 after divesting its gas trading and storage business – the sale of which is due for the middle of the year.
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