Harbour Energy PLC on Thursday reported a strong 2021, with a sharp swing to profit driven by revenue growth and lower charges on impairments.
In late March 2021, Harbour Energy was formed from the merger of Premier Oil PLC and Chrysaor Holdings Ltd.
For 2021, the North Sea-focused oil and gas firm posted a pretax profit of $315 million, swinging from a loss of $978 million the year before.
This was partly due to an impairment charge of $117 million for property, plant and equipment, down from $644 million in 2020, as well as no impairment charge on goodwill, compared to $411 million in 2020.
Also contributing to profit was a 48% increase in revenue to $3.62 billion from $2.44 billion, in turn lifted by higher realised gas prices and increased production volumes for both liquids and gas, in part due to the merger completed at the end of March 2021.
Production volumes for 2021, edged up 1.1% to 175,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day from 173,000 barrels in 2020, with 55% of output being liquids, and the remaining 45% being in gas.
The post hedging realised price for crude oil for 2021 dropped 6.3% to $59 per barrel from $63, however the price for UK natural gas rose 64% to 54 pence per therm from 33p.
Harbour Energy declared a dividend of 11 US cents per share, having paid out nothing in 2020.
Looking ahead, Harbour Energy expects production for 2022 to come between 195,000 and 210,000 barrels per day, reflecting a 11% to 20% rise from 2021.
‘2021 was a transformational year with completion of the merger, our third significant transaction since 2017. As a result, we became a public company with a global footprint and the largest London-listed independent oil and gas company. With our scale, our commitment to producing safely and responsibly, our robust balance sheet and track record of successful M&A, I believe we are well placed to deliver value creation, growth and shareholder returns,’ said Chief Executive Officer Linda Cook.
Shares in Harbour Energy were up 4.4% at 414.00 pence on Thursday in London.
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