UAE-based hydrocarbons minnow, Dragon Oil, says it produced an average of 67,600 b/d of crude on average in 2012, though it increased its December average production to 73,500 b/d. This represented a 10% increase over 2011 levels. The entirety of its production is in Turkmenistan’s offshore area, where Dragon operates in the Cheleken Contract Area – which is located in the eastern Caspian Sea. Dragon, which is majority-owned by Dubai’s Emirates National Oil Company, successfully drilled 15 new wells in 2012. On 12 February, Dragon released test results for one of these wells – with production recorded at 1,653 b/d.
Despite higher crude volumes from its Dzheitune (Lam) field, Dragon’s 2012 financial results were not particularly promising, with after-tax profit falling 7% year-on-year to $600mn. Dragon plans to increase its Turkmenistan production to 100,000 b/d by 2015: the company is set to drill 13-15 additional wells in 2013 and a combined 40 wells in 2014 and 2015. The company’s share price is up 9% since the beginning of the year. (CONTINUED - 270 WORDS)
