Woodside reports higher revenue in September Q

PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Australian oil and gas producer Woodside Petroleum has reported increases in sales volumes and revenues for the three months to September, compared with the previous quarter.

Oil and gas production for the three months to September reached 20.3-million barrels of oil equivalent, which was down from the 20.7-million barrels of oil equivalent achieved during the previous quarter.

However, total sales for the quarter reached more than 21-million barrels of oil equivalent, up from the 20.2-million barrels of oil equivalent sold in the June quarter, with revenues up from A$866.8-million to A$914-million.

Woodside CEO Peter Coleman said on Thursday that the quarter ended September marked further strong operational performance from the Pluto liquefied natural gas (LNG) project, which for the second quarter in succession achieved a number of production records.

Subsequent to the quarter, Woodside also reported the start-up of the Wheatstone LNG and Persephone projects. All these projects are in Western Australia.

“In October, Woodside realised a major component of our near-term growth strategy with the start of LNG production at Wheatstone, which will contribute more than 13-million barrels of oil equivalent of annual production once its two LNG trains and domestic gas plant are fully operational.”

The $34-billion Wheatstone project, at full production,will supply 8.9-million tons a year of LNG for export to customers in Asia.

“Persephone was delivered A$335-million below the expected cost of A$1.2-billion, representing an outstanding achievement by the project team,” Coleman said.

The Persephone project is the third major gas development for the North West Shelf project and involves a two well, 7 km subsea tieback from the Persephone field to the existing North Rankin Complex.

The project recently achieved a combined flow rate design capacity of 475-million standard cubic feet per day.