WPX Energy's net loss totals $53 million so far this year
BY ROD WALTON World Staff Writer
Thursday, August 02, 2012
8/02/12 at 12:09 PM
Falling commodity prices hit WPX Energy Inc. with a $10 million net loss in the second quarter, the Tulsa-based oil and gas producer reported Thursday.
The company’s six-month net loss is $53 million compared to $22 million in profits for the first half of 2011. WPX historically was a subsidiary of Williams Cos. Inc. which was spun off and taken public late last year.
Domestic oil and natural gas liquids production pumped 50,000 barrels per day, 19 percent higher than the same time in 2011. WPX is still primarily a natural gas firm, although the company is moving toward a higher oil and NGL mix.
The decline in forward natural gas prices forced WPX to take $117 million in non-cash impairment charges on its books for the six months so far this year. Adjusted raw earnings - before interest, taxes, depreciation, amortization and exploration expenses - totaled $251 million in the second quarter, compared with $330 million during the same period 2011.
WPX’s Bakken Shale properties delivered strong oil production averaging 9,500 barrels per day, up 83 percent from a year ago. The company also drills wells in the San Juan Basin of New Mexico, Piceance Basin of Colorado and the Marcellus Shale of the eastern U.S.
CEO Ralph Hill expressed optimism that WPX’s returns will strengthen as prices rally.
“And as we’ve seen, gas prices are strengthening,” he said in a statement. “As they improve, we are poised to capitalize on the turnaround.
“In the right price environment, we have the assets and the experience to grow our oil, gas and liquids volumes at a double-digit pace; it’s what we’re built to do,” he added.
For the first half of 2012, WPX participated in 300 gross wells across all of its properties. The company has invested $828 million in capital projects so far this year, mainly in the Bakken, Piceance and Marcellus.
