Hibiscus Petroleum 4Q net profit jumps four-fold, driven by contributions from newly acquired assets

KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 24): Hibiscus Petroleum Bhd posted a four-fold spike in its net profit for the fourth quarter ended June 30, 2022 (4QFY22) to RM215.51 million from RM49.6 million a year ago, underpinned by contributions from its newly acquired assets as well as a strong oil price environment.

Earnings per share leapt to 10.71 sen from 2.49 sen, according to the oil and gas company’s Bursa Malaysia filing on Wednesday (Aug 24). Revenue for the quarter ballooned 243.2% to RM868.37 million from RM253.02 million a year ago.

Hibiscus said its financial performance in the quarter under review was significantly boosted by its recently acquired assets, comprising Fortuna International Petroleum Corp (FIPC).

In 4QFY22, the recently acquired assets contributed RM444.5 million (51.2% of the group’s total) to the group’s revenue, RM199.9 million (46.1% of the group’s total) to its earnings before interest tax depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) and RM120.2 million (55.8% of the group’s total) to its profit after tax, it said.

Additionally, it also noted that strong oil, condensate and gas price levels contributed positively to its earnings in all its producing assets. The group said average realised oil prices approached US$120 per barrel during the quarter.

“For the current quarter (4QFY22), a total of 1.4 million [barrels] of oil and condensate and over 590,000 [barrels] of oil equivalent (boe) of gas were sold,” it added.

In January this year, Hibiscus via its indirect wholly owned subsidiary Peninsula Hibiscus Sdn Bhd successfully completed the acquisition of the entire equity interest in FIPC from Repsol for a purchase price of US$212.5 million.

Meanwhile, for FY22, Hibiscus posted a more than five-fold increase in its net profit to RM613.06 million from RM103.68 million in FY21, while revenue more than doubled to RM1.7 billion from RM804.78 million.

Going forward, Hibiscus said it has targeted to sell a total of approximately 7.2 to 7.5 million boe of oil, condensate and gas — comprising 4.4 to 4.7 million barrels of oil and condensate, and 2.8 million boe of gas.

The group said it expects to sell a total of approximately 1.6 million boe in 1QFY23 and 2.6 million boe in 2QFY23.

“An important milestone to be pursued and delivered over 1QFY23 is the reinstatement of the failed riser at the Anasuria Cluster. This item malfunctioned in May 2021 and with its reinstatement, we hope to see an improved performance going forward,” it added.

Touching on oil price forecast, Hibiscus — citing Rystad Energy’s oil price outlook — said that Brent crude oil prices are expected to remain in the range of US$95 to US$110 per barrel in 2023, underpinned by continued strong demand growth.

“Overall, we remain focused on delivering optimal performance in a strong oil price environment,” it said.

At noon break on Wednesday, shares in Hibiscus Petroleum were down two sen or 2.05% at 95.5 sen, giving it a market capitalisation of RM1.91 billion.