More oil expected from offshore West Africa

Nov. 8 (UPI) -- West-African explorer Tullow Oil said Wednesday it raised its expectations for production following a string of successes off the coast of Ghana.

Tullow, which has headquarters in London, is tapping into the Jubilee oil field and the Tweneboa, Enyenra, Ntomme complex offshore Ghana, some of the more promising basins in West Africa. Tullow CEO Paul McDade said his business was drawing down some of its debt and generating free cash flow.

"We have upgraded our oil production forecasts for West Africa following strong production at both Jubilee and TEN," he said in a statement.

The company said it now expected to produce between 85,000 and 89,000 barrels of oil per day from its portfolio, an upward revision of about 9 percent at the low end.

At the Jubilee field, the company said it expected to continue with remediation work on a floating production and storage facility, which was damaged and hampered progress in the past. The Ghanaian government in October approved of the broader field development plan, which the company said means additional commercial reserves and an extended production profile.

At the TEN complex, Tullow said gross production was already exceeding its expectations. An international maritime tribunal this year settled lingering spats between Ghana and Ivory Coast, and Tullow said the decision had no impact on TEN boundaries. That, the company said, means further development drilling can begin in earnest early next year.

In financials, the company lowered its spending target to around $300 million and expected free cash flow of around $400 million.

Tullow posted a loss of around $519 million for the first half of the year, after taking a pre-tax profit of $24 million during the same period last year. First-half production of around 81,400 barrels of oil equivalent per day was in line with its expectations.