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Pharos Energy PLC on Wednesday said half-year profit and energy both decreased but said the period was marked by a ‘strong operational performance’. The London-based oil and gas exploration and production company, which has assets in Vietnam and Egypt, said pretax profit for the first half of 2023 plummeted to $5.3 million from $98.2 million the previous year. Revenue decreased 23% to $86.2 million from $112.3 million. Pharos swung to a 3.3 pence basic and diluted loss per share, from earnings of 12.3p the year before. Net debt at June 30 was $16.4 million, reduced from $37.9 million at the same time in 2022. Total production volume for the half year was 6,915 barrels of oil equivalent per day, down 13% from 7,962 barrels in 2022. Production in Vietnam decreased 5.0% to 5,566 boepd and by 36% in Egypt to 1,349 barrels of oil per day. Meanwhile, Pharos said the realised oil price fell 22% to $84.89 per barrel from $109.47, and the oil & gas realised price decreased 23% to $76.29 per barrel from $99.49. Pharos did not declare an interim dividend, unchanged from last year. In March, it said it was resuming dividend payments and declared a 1.0p per share final payout for 2022. Chief Executive Officer Jann Brown said the half year ‘has been marked by strong operational performance,’ including production ‘significantly above expectation’ at its CNV field in offshore Vietnam and the ‘successful’ drilling of an exploration well on the North Beni Suef concession south west of Cairo. Pharos hopes to start production at NBS in the fourth quarter. Pharos narrowed its full-year total production guidance to between 6,350 and 6,750 boepd from 6,050 to 7,500. Guidance for Vietnam was narrowed to 5,000 to 5,300 boepd, and for Egypt to between 1,350 and 1,450 bopd. ‘The company continues to focus on delivering returns to shareholders through our commitment to a regular dividend, our ongoing share buybacks, and by driving value throughout the portfolio to grow the business,’ Brown added. Pharos shares were up 4.1% at 23.10p in London around midday on Wednesday. Copyright 2023 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
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