British-based Gulf Keystone announces first profit in Kurdistan oil fields

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – British based oil firm Gulf Keystone Petroleum PLC on Wednesday reported its first profit since beginning work in the oil fields of the Kurdistan Region.

The oil mining company announced a USD 14.1 million pretax profit for 2017, compared to their $17.3 million loss the previous year.

In a statement, Gulf Keystone said it had received 11 payments from the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) in 2017 totaling $132 million, an increase from the $114 million they received in 2016.

Meanwhile, the company’s revenue dropped from $172.4 million in 2017 compared to the $194.4 million posted the year before.

According to its statement, Gulf Keystone said it had achieved an average gross production of 35,298 barrels of oil per day (bpd) in 2017.

Commenting on the profit report, Gulf Keystone’s chief executive Jon Ferrier said they were “pleased to have reported a net profit for the year.”

“We made considerable commercial progress during the year and into 2018, with the signing of the Shaikan Crude Oil Sales Agreement being a key milestone for the company,” he added.

The British-based firm operates in the Kurdistan Region’s Shaikan oil field where it holds a 75 percent production sharing agreement with the KRG.

In January, Gulf Keystone signed a sales agreement with the Kurdish government and said it planned to make significant operational progress.

Under the agreement, the KRG would purchase crude oil from Shaikan at the monthly averaged dated Brent oil price minus a total of $22 per barrel for quality discount and international transportation costs.

Since signing the deal, the company has witnessed a substantial increase in monthly receipts which have averaged $21 million per month.