LONDON (Alliance News) - Bahamas Petroleum Co PLC said Wednesday its 2017 annual loss narrowed year-on-year as increased oil prices led to a "more buoyant commercial environment".
Bahamas Petroleum shares were trading 2.7% higher at 3.24 pence each.
For 2017, the Bahamas-focused oil & gas exploration company posted a pretax loss of USD3.2 million, reduced from USD3.8 million in 2016.
Bahamas Petroleum attributed its "good" results to the increase in oil prices which "enabled a level of optimism to return to the exploration sector".
"Oil prices rose steadily, from around USD50 - USD55 per barrel at the time of my last report to circa USD80 per barrel at the time of writing. As a result of this recovery, both investment capital and the enthusiasm of industry majors have begun to return to the exploration sector," Chairman Bill Schrader said.
The operating loss narrowed to USD3.3 million from USD3.9 million in 2016.
As it is focused on exploration, the company did not post any revenue for the year.
For 2018, Bahamas Petroleum said it will look to secure an agreement which would allow it to commence the first exploration well on its licences.
The company said that the entire board is now deferring 90% of their remuneration "to be repaid only in the event of a successful farm-out or well-financing being completed".
"The outlook for the oil and gas industry in 2018 is more positive than it has been in any of the past five years, given the sustained recovery in the oil price and the pick-up in global exploration activity," Chief Executive Officer Simon Potter said.
