Dana Gas receives new payment from Egypt
Dana Gas received $20 million (Dh73.46m) in payment from the Egyptian government, bringing the total receivables from the North African country to $152m for 2018.
The Sharjah company, one of the biggest private gas players in the region, has struggled with its Egypt receivables in the past and had previously said it would balance new capital expenditure programme against payments.
“We are encouraged by this latest payment and we are looking forward to further payments before year end, which will enable Dana Gas to proceed with its plans to drill the Merak deepwater exploration well, one of several prospects in the Block 6 North El Arish Concession Area with high potential,” Dana Gas chief executive Patrick Allman-Ward said. Another payment is due later this year.
Dana Gas is currently ramping up upstream activity in the North African state, with plans to drill its first deepwater exploration well in the North El Arish offshore concession area early next year.
Final preparations were under way to spud the well, the company added.
Earlier this month, Dana Gas said production capacity had increased by 12.5 per cent from the end of September thanks to higher output from the Kurdistan Region of Iraq as well as Egypt.
Production reached 70,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd) in November and has remained above that level, up from the nine-month average of 62,250 boepd.
Production from the drilling of the Balsam-8 well in Egypt in the fourth quarter also contributed more than 5,000 boepd to the increase in production.
Dana Gas’ net profit attributable to equity shareholders in the third quarter fell 83 per cent to $17m because of oneoff items booked in 2017 were not repeated.
Excluding entitlement adjustments following settlement with the Kurdistan Regional Government and interest on overdue receivables due from the KRG in 2017, the company’s net profit more than tripled from the third quarter of 2017.