LONDON (Alliance News) - RusPetro PLC on Thursday posted a rise in revenue in the third quarter on the back of higher production resulting from the completion of its first horizontal well in July, despite the lower oil price, and said it is in talks on securing a deal to restructure its balance sheet.
The Russia-focused oil development and production company said revenue in the third quarter to the end of September hit USD16.5 million, up 17% on the USD14.1 million posted in the second quarter. It was boosted by the start of drilling at the Well 214 site in Western Siberia.
Average production for the group in the third quarter was 3,854 barrels of oil per day, up 19% on the second quarter on the back of the Well 214 performance.
The group said its cash position has also been boosted by the USD10 million loan received from Limolines Transport Ltd, which holds a 27% stake in the company. In addition, it signed a domestic prepayment facility this week with Glencore PLC for RUB200 million, or around USD5 million.
Under the Glencore deal, RusPetro will deliver 10,000 metric tonnes of crude oil per quarter to the FTSE 100 commodities group.
The company had a cash balance of USD3.3 million at October 28, down from USD7.7 million at the end of June.
RusPetro also said it is in advanced talks on the restructuring of its balance sheet in order to secure additional funding to back its appraisal and drilling plans. It expects to announce details of the restructuring in November.
The company warned, however, that should there be a delay in securing the restructuring, which it expects to complete in mid-December, it will have to raise additional funding to back its operations and will have to implement additional actions in order to cut costs.
Shares in RusPetro were up 4.2% to 14.85 pence on Thursday.
By Sam Unsted; samunsted@alliancenews.com; @SamUAtAlliance
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