Full Year 2023 Financial Results

Seplat Energy PLC

29 February 2024

 

Please see the Full Audited Results in attached PDF

http://www.rns-pdf.londonstockexchange.com/rns/9272E_1-2024-2-29.pdf

Audited results for the twelve months ended

31 December 2023

29 February 2024

Lagos and London, 29 February 2024: Seplat Energy PLC ("Seplat Energy" or "the Company"), a leading Nigerian independent energy company listed on both the Nigerian Exchange and the London Stock Exchange, announces its audited results for the twelve months ended 31 December 2023.

Financial highlights   

•	Revenue $1,061.3 million up 12% from $951.8 million in 2022.
•	Average realised oil price $83.39/bbl (2022: $101.67/bbl); average realised gas price $2.90/Mscf (2022: $2.82/Mscf).
•	Unit production opex of $10.4/boe, (2022: $10.3/boe).
•	Cash generated from operations of $520 million, down 10% on 2022, funding capex of $184 million and enhanced shareholder returns.
•	Balance sheet strengthened, year-end cash at bank $450 million (2022: $404 million), excluding $128.3 million MPNU deposit.
•	Net debt at year end 2023 reduced to $306 million (YE 2022: $366 million). Net Debt to EBITDA 0.7x.

Operational highlights

•	Production averaged 47,758 boepd, up 8% from 2022 (44,104 boepd), and within original guidance.
•	Year end 2023 independently audited 2P reserves up 9% to 478 mmboe (YE 2022: 438 mmboe), 47% liquids.
•	Drilled and completed 14 wells in 2023 (of which 6 completed in 4Q 2023), in line with our revised well program.
•	ANOH gas plant achieved mechanical completion on 29th December 2023. Our government partner recently announced the tunnelling operations on the Niger river crossing portion of the OB3 pipeline have begun. Seplat's first gas guidance of 3Q 2024 is unchanged.
•	Carbon emissions intensity: 27.9 kg CO2/boe (2022: 23.9 kg CO2/boe).
•	Achieved more than 8.7 million hours without Lost Time Injury (LTI) on Seplat-operated assets in 2023.

Special Dividend & Board Changes

•	Board recommends a special dividend of US 3c/shr, in addition to Q4 23 declared dividend of US 3c/shr.
•	Core dividend declared for 2023 of US 12 c/shr, up 20% on 2022. Total dividend declared US 15c/shr.
•	Mr. Udoma Udo Udoma elected as Chairman of the Board and will assume office on 1st April 2024, when he succeeds Mr.Basil Omiyi.
•	Mr. Bello Rabiu elected as Senior Independent Non-Executive Director (SINED) and will succeed Dr. Charles Okeahalam effective 1st April 2024.

2024 Outlook

•	2024 production guidance of 44-52 kboepd. Guidance assumes availability of TNP from 3Q 2024, and assumes ANOH contribution in line with guidance.
•	Initial 2024 capex guidance $170-200 million. Drilling capex flat on 2022 (13 wells in base plan). Seplat will fund capex on Abiala, a marginal field development tied into OML40.
•	In February 2024 we received regulatory approval for the full lifecycle Field development plan (FDP) for the Sibiri oil discovery on OML40.
•	We remain highly confident that President Tinubu's administration will approve our acquisition of Exxon Mobil's share capital of Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited (MPNU).

Roger Brown, Chief Executive Officer, said:

"Seplat Energy's 2023 results illustrate the Company's ability to deliver production growth, fortify our balance sheet and reward shareholders despite facing some unexpected challenges during the year.

Operational performance was strong, production increased 8% over 2022 and we recorded the lowest level of reconciliation losses seen in recent years, a testament to the improving security efforts on the Niger Delta. Drilling yielded positive results, and I'm pleased to report strong 2P reserves growth, up 9% on prior year estimates. Our revenue exceeded $1bn, and while costs increased, our proactive approach meant we generated more than $260m of free cash flow in the year, allowing us to continue rewarding our shareholders and further reduce net debt.

Our strong financial position, excellent operational performance and robust outlook means that we are delighted to declare a special dividend again this year, lifting the total dividend for the year to US$15 cents.

In 2024, we look forward to a number of key growth events. We are moving forward on both the Sibiri and Abiala developments on OML40. Clear progress is also being made on the important ANOH gas project, with first gas expected in 3Q 2024. Finally, we have high confidence that we will conclude the transformational acquisition of MPNU this year.

I'm delighted to welcome Mr.Udoma as Seplat Energy's new Chairman and Mr. Rabiu as SINED and wholeheartedly thank Mr.Omiyi and Mr. Okeahalam for their longstanding support and guidance. Nigeria's Oil & Gas industry is going through a generational change and as we reach our tenth year as a listed company, we fully intend to play an important role as Nigeria's leading independent company." 

Summary of performance	$ million					₦ billion
	FY 2023	FY 2022	% Change		FY 2023		FY 2022
Revenue	1,061.3	951.8	11.5%		696.9		403.9
Gross profit	532.0	464.7	14.5%		349.3		197.2
EBITDA *	447.9	416.9	7.4%		294.1		176.9
Operating profit (loss)	249.4	274.7	(9.2%)		163.7		116.6
Profit (loss) before tax	191.2	204.4	(6.4%)		125.5		86.7
Cash generated from operations	519.9	574.6	(9.5%)		340.6		243.9
Working interest production (boepd)	47,758	44,104	8.3%
Volumes lifted (MMbbls)	11.3	8.3	36.3%
Average realised oil price ($/bbl.)	$83.39	$101.67	(18.0%)
Average realised gas price ($/Mscf)	$2.90	$2.82	2.8%
LTIF	0	0
CO2 emissions intensity from operated assets, kg/boe	27.1	23.9	13.4%

* Adjusted for non-cash items

 Responsibility for publication

This announcement has been authorised for publication on behalf of Seplat Energy by Emeka Onwuka, Chief Financial Officer, Seplat Energy PLC.

Signed:

Emeka Onwuka

Chief Financial Officer       

Important notice The information contained within this announcement is unaudited and deemed by the Company to constitute inside information as stipulated under Market Abuse Regulations. Upon the publication of this announcement via Regulatory Information Services, this inside information is now considered to be in the public domain. Certain statements included in these results contain forward-looking information concerning Seplat Energy's strategy, operations, financial performance or condition, outlook, growth opportunities or circumstances in the countries, sectors, or markets in which Seplat Energy operates. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve uncertainty because they depend on future circumstances and relate to events of which not all are within Seplat Energy's control or can be predicted by Seplat Energy. Although Seplat Energy believes that the expectations and opinions reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, no assurance can be given that such expectations and opinions will prove to have been correct. Actual results and market conditions could differ materially from those set out in the forward-looking statements. No part of these results constitutes, or shall be taken to constitute, an invitation or inducement to invest in Seplat Energy or any other entity and must not be relied upon in any way in connection with any investment decision. Seplat Energy undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether because of new information, future events or otherwise, except to the extent legally required.

Investor call

At 12:00 GMT / 13.00 WAT on Thursday 29 February 2024, the Executive Management team will host a conference call and webcast to present the Company's results.

The presentation can be accessed remotely via a live webcast link and pre-registering details are below. After the meeting, the webcast recording will be made available and access details of this recording are also set out below. 

A copy of the presentation will be made available on the day of results on the Company's website at https://seplatenergy.com/.

Event title:	Seplat Energy Plc: Full year results
Event date	12:00pm (London) 1:00pm (Lagos) Thursday 29 February 2024
Webcast Live Event Link	https://www.lsegissuerservices.com/spark/SeplatPetroleumDevelopmentCo/events/324685dd-279c-4b55-8629-0bf1130486fc
Conference call and pre-register Link:	https://url.za.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/e9tzCvg5D2T7jJPwC5Ynhc?domain=lseg.registrations.events

The Company requests that participants dial in 10 minutes ahead of the call. When dialing in, please follow the instructions that will be emailed to you following your registration.

Enquiries:

Seplat Energy Plc
Emeka Onwuka, Chief Financial Officer	[phone]
Eleanor Adaralegbe, CFO Designate
James Thompson, Head of Investor Relations	[e-mail]
Ayeesha Aliyu, Investor Relations
Chioma Afe, Director, External Affairs & Social Performance
FTI Consulting
Ben Brewerton / Christopher Laing	[phone] [e-mail]
Citigroup Global Markets Limited
Luke Spells / Peter Catterall	[phone]
Investec Bank plc
Chris Sim / Charles Craven	[phone]

About Seplat Energy

Seplat Energy PLC (Seplat) is Nigeria's leading indigenous energy company. Listed on the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX: SEPLAT) and the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange (LSE: SEPL), we are pursuing a Nigeria-focused growth strategy in oil and gas, as well as developing a Power & New Energy business to lead Nigeria's energy transition.

Seplat's energy portfolio consists of seven oil and gas blocks in the prolific Niger Delta region of Nigeria, which we operate with partners including the Nigerian Government and other oil producers. We also have a revenue interest in OML 55. We operate a 465MMscfd gas processing plant at Oben, in OML4, and are building the 300MMscfd ANOH Gas Processing Plant in OML53 and a new 85MMscfd gas processing plant at Sapele in OML41, to augment our position as a leading supplier of gas to the domestic power generation market. https://www.seplatenergy.com/

 

END