Aker BP boasts record-high output and pledges to stay ‘pure-play oil and gas company’

Norwegian oil and gas company Aker BP has pledged to remain a pure-play oil and gas company and contribute to the energy transition through minimizing emissions and by sharing data to other industries as it works to increase its output by 70 per cent by 2028.

Aker BP managed to boost its quarterly profit driven by a record-high production during the last quarter of the year.

In its quarterly report on Thursday, Aker BP said it had the record-high production of 223.1 thousand barrels of oil equivalents per day (mboepd) during the last quarter of 2020, up from 201.6 in the previous quarter.

According to Aker BP, the increase from the previous quarter was driven by new wells on production at Ærfugl and Alvheim fields, by higher production from the Johan Sverdrup field, and by generally higher production efficiency.

The full-year 2020 production was 210.7 mboepd, which is 35 per cent higher than in 2019.

Net profit in the quarter was $129 million, which is an increase compared to a profit of $112 million in 4Q 2019.

For the full year 2020, net profit was $45 million, compared to $145 million the previous year.

The main reason for the decrease was a 36 per cent drop in realized oil and gas prices compared to the year before.

The company’s total income in 4Q 2020 amounted to $834 million, a decrease from the income of $1.003 billion in 4Q 2019.

Aker BP’s total capital spend for 2020 amounted to $1.73 billion, approximately $0.5 billion lower than originally planned due to the protective measures taken in response to the uncertainty caused by Covid-19 and lower oil prices.

In the report on Thursday, Aker BP said it will remain a pure-play oil and gas company and will contribute to the energy transition through maximizing value creation, minimizing emissions, and by sharing of data and competence to other industries.

In 2020, Aker BP’s CO2 emissions were reduced to 4.5 kg per barrel of oil equivalents (boe), which is less than one-third of the global industry average, according to the Norwegian company.

In 2020, the production efficiency of Aker BP’s operated fields was 92 per cent. Production costs were significantly reduced to $8.3 per boe.

The company is now implementing a new operating model to drive further improvements with a target of a long-term cost level below $7 per boe.

Aker BP continues preparing for final investment decisions for 10-12 new field development projects by the end of 2022. The largest of these is the coordinated development of the NOAKA area.

In total, these projects cover more than 500 million barrels of new resources net to Aker BP.

When these projects are completed, the company expects to increase its production by 70 per cent to more than 350 mboepd by 2028.