In its quarterly report, the company, whose only production and revenue source is the offshore Mauritanian asset, reported that net output dropped from 622,000 barrels of oil to 458,000 barrels, while revenue was $44,208, down from $73,900.
While Chinguetti continues to disappoint, Hardman CEO Simon Potter said his company’s third quarter news was dominated by the proposed takeover.
“We are very please with the positive response from shareholders and the documentation of the scheme of arrangement is progressing well. We look forward to the scheme completion at the end of this year,” Potter said.
Hardman’s board has unanimously recommended its shareholders accept Tullow’s $2.02 cash per share offer. If successful, the takeover would see Hardman quit the Australian Stock Exchange.
Meanwhile, Potter said the Woodside-led Chinguetti JV was making progress in its future plans for the troubled project.
“Operationally, production at Chinguetti has remained relatively stable through the third quarter and progress has been made in implementing measures to improve field performance,” he said.
The $US700 million ($A930 million) Chinguetti field originally started pumping more than 70,000 barrels of oil per day (bopd) when it first came onstream in late February. Output then declined steadily before stabilising around 32,000-38,000bopd.
Average daily production for the September quarter was 30,999 bopd, reported Hardman.
In an attempt to offset the unpredicted decline, operator Woodside Petroleum plans to create a 4D seismic dataset by analyzing existing and new 3D data to understand fluid flows better and to optimize the location of future wells.
The JV, which also includes Roc Oil, has approved the acceleration of infill drilling, with one well, Chinguetti-18, to spud later this year to target a currently undrilled section of the reservoir.
Hardman said that further infill drilling at this stage would most likely wait until after the 4D seismic interpretation.
Looking ahead, Hardman said that the JV expects production to continue at a similar level, with slow natural decline over a longer period.
“In Uganda, we are looking to drive the pace of appraising upside in our discoveries following the successful Mputa test results, as well as accelerating further exploration and evaluating early production options,” Potter said.
