North African production could double by year's end

May 17 (UPI) -- North African oil and gas production has enough momentum that production could double by the end of the year, SDX Energy said Thursday.

SDX focuses primarily on Egypt and Morocco. It's a relatively minor producer, but an active player in emerging basins.

Morocco is a standout in the region with its renewable energy ambitions, targeting 52 percent of its energy mix from low-carbon options by 2030. The country is on pace to put 2 gigawatts of solar and wind power on stream each by the end of the decade.

SDX operates three concessions in Morocco, with a 75 percent working interest. The company's drilling program has been successful at seven of its nine gas wells drilled so far.

In Egypt, Italian energy company Eni last week started production from a third unit started at the Zohr field, increasing its installed capacity to 1.2 billion cubic feet per day. The project is producing about 1.1 billion cubic feet per day and the acceleration follows a start date in December.

For SDX, its operations are on pace for a slight increase. In January 2017, the company paid $28.1 million to take over the Egyptian and Moroccan businesses of Circle Oil.

President and CEO Paul Welch said that, so far, net revenue and overall production are up considerably from last year.

"As at March 31, 2018, we are well funded for our numerous work commitments this year with $29.3 million of cash, no debt and we remain on track to double our production by the end of 2018," he said in a statement.

SDX posted revenue to March 31 of $11 million, up 35 percent from the same period last year. It realized $59.34 per barrel for oil, up 33 percent year-on-year. Moroccan gas prices were up 8 percent from last year.