Woodside First Quarter Revenue Drops 30%

Australian oil and gas major Woodside has reported a 30 percent year-on-year drop in first quarter sales as energy prices continue to remain low.

For the first three months of 2016, company’s revenue stood at $982 million, Woodside said Wednesday. Production volumes increased 8.7 percent on year to 23.7 mmboe, predominantly due to higher production at Pluto LNG. Sales volumes increased 1.3 percent to 24.2 mmboe, reflecting the timing of LNG shipments.

Woodside CEO Peter Coleman said the company was progressing well with its low-cost, high-value growth strategy. “We are taking advantage of market conditions and applying latest technology to reduce life cycle costs further enhancing our position as a low cost operator. This will also improve project concepts to deliver a portfolio of globally competitive decision-ready projects,” he said.

Woodside remains bullish on LNG as a business.

In an address to shareholder on Thursday, Chairman Michael Chaney Woodside said in the long-term, Woodside remains firmly of the view that LNG is a growth business.

“Globally, concerns about climate change and air quality are shaping future demand. During the past year, we have seen numerous governments around the world adopt more stringent clean energy policies. There is broad consensus about the key role that LNG is expected to play in the future energy mix,” Chaney said.

Woodside expects after 2022, a total of 200 million tons of LNG will need to come online to meet anticipated 2030 demand.