Seplat Energy PLC has recorded an increase of 11.5 per cent revenue to $1,061.3 million, crossing the $1.0 billion mark for the first time.
The energy company listed on both the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) and the London Stock Exchange (LSE), convened its 11th Annual General Meeting (AGM) virtually yesterday with the shareholders approving the payment of a total dividend of US 15 cents by the company as recommended by the board.
This comprises a special dividend of US 3 cent per share for the 2023 business year aside the core dividend of US 12 cent per share.
Chairman of the board, Seplat Energy, Mr Udoma Udo Udoma, said: “We delivered a strong set of results in 2023, against a weaker oil price environment. Despite the 17.0% decline in average price of Brent crude, we grew our oil and gas revenue by 11.5% to $1,061.3 million, crossing the $1.0 billion mark for the first time, supported by improved production and asset availability. We also made significant progress on several of our growth projects, showing a willingness to not just deliver value today but to plan for tomorrow.
“Our average daily production also increased by 8.3% in 2023, to 47,758 boepd (barrels of oil equivalent per day), from 44,104 bopd in 2022, with revenue from oil and gas sales for 2023 rising to 11.5% to $1,061.3 million from $952.0 million in 2022. This excludes the reported $98.9 million overlift. We also completed 14 new wells across our operated and non-operated assets.”
CEO of Seplat Energy, Mr Roger Brown, stressed the commitment of the company to increase its contribution to Nigeria’s power sector by providing lower carbon and renewable energy solutions.
He said: “As Nigeria’s leading indigenous energy company, we recognise our duty to minimise the impact of our operations on the environment. We aim to create increasingly sustainable energy solutions to provide access and meet increasing energy demand, while addressing the critical challenge of climate change for society and our business.”
Seplat Energy’s CFO-designate, Mrs Eleanor Adaralegbe, stated that the payment of the special dividend reflects the board’s continued confidence in the future of the business and is underpinned by a strong balance sheet, crystallising Seplat’s commitment to delivering value to its investors.
COO of Seplat Energy, Mr Samson Ezugworie, stated that the company has achieved a cumulative 10.6-million-man hours since last LTI recorded on the 13th of October, 2022.
“Safety remains our top priority. Several training sessions on Incident Management, Process Safety Management Training for Operations, Engineering, Maintenance, Wells, and HSE Team members were conducted over the past year to ensure our teams in the various asset locations are updated on the latest procedures on safety,” he said.