Business and Financial Review • May 29, 2020
Business and Financial Review
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OKEA ASA - Financial and operational update
OKEA ASA - Financial and operational update
Trondheim, 29 May 2020 - OKEA ASA ("OKEA" or the "Company") hereby provides a
financial and operational update.
In an effort to contribute to a faster stabilization of the oil and gas industry
following the demand disruptions caused by COVID-19, the Norwegian Government
announced in April its decision to implement production restriction measures for
oil production for 2020. For the Company's portfolio, the main impact relates to
the Draugen field, as the Gjøa field (12.00% WI) is exempted from the production
limitations.
Permitted production volumes for Draugen (44.56% WI) for June and H2-20 have
been reduced from a total of 3.63 million bbls to a total of 3.43 million bbls.
In order to re-optimize the operation and production at Draugen, the license has
decided to move the bi-annual maintenance shutdown from September to late June.
On this basis, OKEA maintains the production guidance for 2020 of 14,000 -
15,000 boepd on average for the year. The revised shutdown schedule results in a
postponement of an OKEA lifting which was previously planned for June to August
which, due to revenue from sale of petroleum products being recognized in the
financial statements at lifting, will increase the risk of a breach in bond
covenants for Q2 2020.
Implementation of COVID-19 related infection control measures and travel
restrictions has resulted in significantly lower availability of personnel at
the Aker Solutions yard in Egersund where the Maersk Inspirer rig for the Yme
project (15.00% WI) is undergoing an upgrade. Consent for using the rig on the
Yme field was given by the Petroleum Safety Authority 18 May. In case of
prolonged restrictions, in addition to the inherent schedule risk of all large
modification projects, OKEA expects first oil for Yme to be delayed to the first
half of 2021. OKEA continues to work closely with operator Repsol to ensure a
robust and safe project execution.
OKEA is currently in dialogue with bondholders in OKEA02 and OKEA03 to discuss
terms of a temporary waiver. The Company is also monitoring the progress of the
Norwegian Government's proposed temporary changes to the petroleum tax regime,
which may have a material positive liquidity effect for OKEA. A final resolution
by the Norwegian Parliament is expected before Parliament's scheduled summer
leave on 19 June. The Company intends to await the recommendation from the
Government's Finance Committee, which is expected on 4 June, prior to summon for
bondholders' meetings.
For further information, please contact:
Erik Haugane, CEO, +47 907 21 655
Ståle Myhre, VP Investor Relations, +47 917 51 878
About OKEA ASA
OKEA is an Exploration and Production (E&P) company and operator on the
Norwegian Continental Shelf with production of ~19 000 boe per day. OKEA aims to
grow through low-cost field developments of discoveries with reserves up to 100
million boe and through mergers and acquisitions (M&A). The operating
organisation is built on the acquisition of the producing field Draugen in 2018.
OKEA is listed on Oslo Stock Exchange under the ticker "OKEA".
More information on www.okea.no
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