Tullow Oil swings to profit in first half; CFO to step down

Tullow Oil TLW.L finance chief Les Wood will step down by the end of March, the oil and gas company said on Wednesday after it reported a first-half profit driven by cost cuts.

The London-listed company also raised the lower end of its 2021 production target to reflect increased output from its Simba field in Central Africa while it deferred the planned maintenance shutdown of the Jubilee plant in Ghana into 2022.

It now expects 2021 output between 58,000-61,000 barrels Of oil equivalent per day (boepd) compared with its previous forecast of 55,000-61,000 boepd.

Tullow, which has been operating in Africa since 1986, said profit after tax came in at $93 million for the six months ended June, from a loss of $1.33 billion last year due to impairment charges.

“Strong operational performance in the first half of the year and a transformational debt refinancing have put Tullow on a firm footing to deliver our business plan,” Chief Executive Officer Rahul Dhir said.

The company, focused in Africa and South America, said the search process to find a new chief financial officer is expected to conclude in the first quarter of 2022.
Source: Reuters (Reporting by Shanima A in Bengaluru; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips)