7th Dec 2018 09:46
LONDON (Alliance News) - Premier Oil PLC on Friday said it has completed the sale of its southern North Sea Babbage interests to Verus Petroleum SNS Ltd and is on track to meet its 2018 production forecast.
Exploration and production firm Premier Oil has received GBP30.3 million for its Babbage interests, after adjusting for cash flows collected by Premier since the January 2018 effective date.
Versus will also take on exploration commitments valued at approximately USD24 million.
The sale proceeds, Premier Oil said, will be used to pay down its existing debt.
Premier Oil expects its 2018 production to be around 80,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day, rising from 75,000 barrels in 2017.
Year-to-date production has averaged 79,400 barrels of oil equivalent per day with November and December to date above forecast at 92,000 barrels per day, driven by high uptime across its producing portfolio.
The oil producer also noted that more than 30% of its 2019 forecast oil entitlement production has been hedged at an average price of USD70 per barrel.
An update on Premier Oil's Mexican interests also was provided. Premier Oil noted that its 40% partner in the offshore Block 7 Zama discovery is to be acquired by DEA Deutsche Erdoel AG.
DEA Deutsche Erdoel operates, and is a 40% partner in, Premier Oil's Block 30, also in offshore Mexico.
The Zama-2 well, located at Block 7 Zama, was spudded in late November. The aim of the well is to confirm the oil water contact, and is expected to reach the reservoir "early in the new year".
Shares in Premier Oil were up 1.2% at 66.90 pence on Friday.
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