New Zealand Oil & Gas Back In Black

New Zealand Oil & Gas (NZOG) has reported a profit for the 12-month period that ended June 30, 2018.

The company recorded a net profit of NZ$4.8mn (US$3.2mn) during the year compared with net loss of NZ$32.7mn, excluding asset sales, in the previous year. Revenue was NZ$35.8mn, down 3.5% year on year, NZOG said August 27. The contributors to revenue were production from Kupe field of NZ$9.2mn and Cue Energy’s production of NZ$26.6mn.

CEO Andrew Jefferies said operational activities were modest and the company is looking to change scale. “Backed by the global capability of our major shareholder, O.G. Oil & Gas (Singapore) Pte Ltd, and with NZ$98mn cash, New Zealand Oil & Gas has entered an exciting new growth phase. We are actively pursuing acquisition targets, screening non-operated assets where we can add value. We see natural gas assets in many markets replacing higher carbon fuel sources as the world undergoes a decades-long energy transformation. But the world still needs energy and we will step in where we identify quality,” Jefferies said.

Last month, NZOG said it will drill three exploration wells  before the end of December 2018. The company plans to drill one well in New Zealand’s Taranaki Basin and two in Indonesia. In Taranaki, NZOG has 25% interest in the Kohatukai well in PEP 55768, targeting gas condensate in a field analagous to the nearby Pohokura field that currently provides about a third of New Zealand’s total gas production. NZOG is active in New Zealand, Australia and Indonesia.