BY CHIKA IZUORA, OLUSHOLA BELLO |
Seplat Petroleum Development Company Plc will be paying a total dividend of $0.10 per share for the financial year ended December 31, 2021.
The Nigerian independent energy company listed on both the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) and the London Stock released its audited results for the financial year ended December 31, 2020 yesterday.
According to the results, revenue in full year 2020 was $530.5million (N190.9 billion) as against $697.8 million (N214.2 billion) in 2019. Gross profit was $124.6 million (N44.8 billion) in 2020 from $395.7 million (N121.5 billion) in 2019, down by 68.5 percent.
Also, Cash flow from operation was also down by 3.6 per cent to $329.4 million (N118.6 billion) in 2020, as against $341.6 million (N104.7 billion) in 2019.
On the outlook for 2021, CEO of Seplat, Roger Brown said, 2020 was a challenging year for the company but Seplat has once again shown its resilience and ability to overcome challenges and deliver production in line with guidance, operating with minimal incidences of COVID-19 cases.
He noted that despite seeing the lowest oil prices in its 10-year history, the company has continued to honour its commitment to shareholders of a regular income stream on their investment, by maintaining a total dividend of $0.10 per share for the year.
According to Brown, gas is the lower-carbon feedstock for affordable electricity for Nigeria’s young and rapidly-growing population.
He added that “we remain committed to providing shared value for all of our stakeholders. During the year, with our government partners, we provided medical beds and other palliatives to our communities and have started construction on a 200-bed infectious diseases hospital. Seplat continues to focus on employment opportunities for communities, education, healthcare and knowledge transfer and local capacity development.”
“For 2021, Seplat expects to produce an average of 48,000 to 55,000 boepd, taking into account the impact of OPEC+ quotas. We continue to hedge against oil price volatility and expect a higher proportion of revenues to come from long-term gas contracts at stable prices.
“We have significant cash resources and will continue to manage our finances prudently in 2021, expecting to invest $150 million of capital expenditure across the full year. We remain confident that our ongoing cost-cutting initiatives and prudent management of cash will enable further reductions in debt, whilst supporting dividend payments and investment for growth,” he pointed out.
