AsianOil: Woodside achieves profit record amid high gas price

Australia’s biggest oil and gas producer Woodside Energy achieved record output and sales in the third quarter, thanks to soaring gas prices and the wrap-up of its merger with BHP’s petroleum division.

The LNG exporter also raised its output guidance after its $40bn tie-up with BHP’s petroleum business was completed in June. Full-year production guidance was increased by 3% to 153-157mn barrels of oil equivalent (boe).

The production of 51.2mn boe for the three-month period was up 52% on the June quarter and more than double the same quarter a year ago.

Revenues soared 70% from the previous quarter to $5.9bn in the September quarter, representing a significant bump from $1.6bn in the same period a year ago as BHP’s assets were added.

Woodside is using returns from the deal to reinvest in new supply, including in the $16.5bn Scarborough gas project in Western Australia, the Sangomar oil project in Senegal and new opportunities such as the Trion oil project in Mexico and hydrogen developments in the US and Australia.

Woodside realised an average price of $32.70 per mmBtu from LNG sold from its trading portfolio – almost a fourfold increase from a year earlier and equal to $207 per boe. The company overall sold its hydrocarbons for $102 per boe, including $117 per boe for its own LNG supply.

As for its Scarborough LNG project, Woodside said discussions were ongoing to find an equity partner. The project in Western Australia was 21% completed at the end of the quarter, while Sangomar was 70% finished.

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