Record Sales for Santos (Australia)

Santos today announced record sales revenue of $1.1 billion for the fourth quarter of 2013. The record result was driven by the company’s highest oil production in six years, strong oil prices and higher third party sales volumes. Total sales revenue for 2013 of $3.6 billion was also a record and 12% higher than 2012.

Record Sales for Santos (Australia)

Fourth quarter production of 13.1 million barrels of oil equivalent (mmboe) was in line with the corresponding period and 2% lower than the third quarter of 2013.

Gas production of 53.2 petajoules (PJ) (9.1 mmboe) was 6% lower than the corresponding period, with higher production from the Carnarvon Basin offset by lower production in the Cooper Basin and Asia.

The average gas price of $5.53/GJ for the December quarter was 10% higher than the corresponding quarter, driven by higher gas prices in Western Australia and Indonesia, and higher LNG prices from Darwin LNG.

Quarterly crude oil production of 3.0 million barrels was 5% higher than the previous quarter, driven by higher production from Fletcher Finucane and Chim Sáo. The average oil price for the quarter was A$127 per barrel.

Key activities during the period

PNG LNG is over 90% complete and on track for first LNG in the second half of 2014, with commissioning gas from the Kutubu field introduced into the upstream Hides Gas Conditioning Plant in December. Commissioning is also ramping up at the LNG plant with gas circulating in train 1, the refrigeration compressors being test run, and the LNG loading jetty and both LNG tanks completed.

The GLNG project is over 72% complete and on track for first LNG in 2015, with over 230 CSG wells drilled for the year, the first new Fairview and Roma wells connected to the new water processing infrastructure, pre-commissioning of the gas transmission pipeline underway and 90% of the train 1 modules delivered to Curtis Island.

Further shale gas success in the Cooper Basin: the Moomba-194 vertical shale well flowed gas at an average rate of 3 million standard cubic feet (mmscf) per day.

Santos Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer David Knox said that the last quarter of 2013 saw the company continue to make strong progress in the delivery of its major projects, underpinning its strategy to expose its resources to Asian markets.

In the second half of 2014 the first of these projects, PNG LNG, is on track to commence LNG shipments to Asia, delivering a significant boost in production and cashflow for the company. We are very pleased with the progress being made on the project, with commissioning of the upstream and LNG plant facilities well underway.”

“The GLNG project remains on track for first LNG in 2015, and we are confident that this year will see the project achieve a number of major milestones.”

“The estimated capital cost for both the PNG LNG and GLNG projects is unchanged.”

“Last year we continued to increase our understanding of our shale resources in the Cooper Basin, with the Moomba-194 and 191 wells delivering encouraging results. The proximity of these resources to existing infrastructure provides us with a real advantage, and our exploration efforts will continue in 2014.”

 

“For Santos, 2014 will also see the company continue to build and strengthen its base business here in Australia, while exploring opportunities for focused growth in Asia,”   Knox said.

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Press Release, January 23, 2014