Noble Energy Inc. (NYSE: NBL) sold 174 million cubic feet per day of natural gas in Israel in the second quarter of 2011, 44% more than in the corresponding quarter of 2010. The company attributed the increase to strong power generation demand and lower competing imports.
Consequently, Noble Energy raised its full-year sales volume guidance to 215-218 million barrels of oil equivalent per day "with the primary driver being higher natural gas volumes in Israel."
Noble Energy's revenue rose to $954 million for the second quarter from $751 million revenue for the corresponding quarter. GAAP-based net profit rose to $294 million ($1.61 per share) for the second quarter from $204 million for the corresponding quarter, and non-GAAP net profit rose to 263 million ($1.44 per share) from $198 million.
The company's liquid assets increased to $3.6 billion at the end of June, including $1.5 billion in cash.
Noble Energy increased its 2011 total capital program by $300 million to $3 billion. Over a third of the increase is for new high-impact international exploration opportunities, with the remainder supporting the expansion of the Wattenberg horizontal Niobrara program in Colorado, the acceleration of major projects in Equatorial Guinea, and the addition of a new near-term gas development project in Israel.
The company added that it was proceeding with development of the Noa offshore field in the third quarter of 2011, and that it expects production to begin in the second half of 2012. Noble Energy jointly owns the field with Delek Group Ltd. (TASE: DLEKG).
Noble Energy and Delek are also partners in Yam Tethys, and in the Tamar, Dalit, and Leviathan fields.
Noble Energy chairman and CEO Charles Davidson said, "The second quarter was another strong quarter for Noble Energy. In addition, we anticipate testing multiple exploration opportunities in West Africa, the Eastern Mediterranean, and the deepwater Gulf of Mexico before the end of the year."
Noble Energy's share price closed at $95.33 yesterday, giving a market cap of $16.8 billion.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on July 28, 2011
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