RIL’s 2016-17 oil, gas revenues fall over 30%

Mumbai, April 24 (IANS) Reliance Industries (RIL) on Monday posted a 30.9 per cent fall in revenue from its oil and gas business in the last fiscal at Rs 5,191 crore, as compared with Rs 7,514 crore during the like period in 2015-16, owing to lower gas production and its lower price realisation.

Announcing their results for 2016-17, RIL said: "4Q FY17 revenue for domestic E&P (exploration and production) operations was at Rs 680 crore down 24.5 per cent YoY (year-on-year) due to lower gas price realisation and declining volumes."

During 2016-17, RIL's gas production was at 95 billion cubic feet (bcf), down 23 per cent compared with last year and its production from the US shale business was 162.5 bcf, down 20 per cent year-on-year.

For the fourth quarter ended March, the Mukesh Ambani-led RIL's revenues for the oil and gas segment fell by 19.9 per cent to Rs 1,309 crore, compared with Rs 1,634 crore during the same period last year.

"Continuing weak price environment in the domestic market and declining production trend impacted segment revenues," the company said in a statement.

"KG-D6 field produced 0.28 million barrels (MMBBL) of crude oil and 23.4 BCF of natural gas in 4Q FY17, a reduction of 15 per cent and 25 per cent, respectively, on a Y-o-Y basis," it said.

"Fall in oil and gas production was mainly on account of natural decline in the fields coupled with water and sand ingress. Efforts are on to keep the wells flowing until production from new projects come on stream," it added.

The company's Panna-Mukta fields produced 1.44 MMBBL of crude oil and 14.8 bcf of natural gas during the quarter in consideration, "a reduction of 20 per cent and 18 per cent respectively on a Y-o-Y basis."

"The fall in production is owing to the natural decline of the field and unplanned rise remedial works."

Revenue for fiscal 2016-17 from the refining and marketing segment at Rs 2,50,833 crore, however, increased by 6.8 per cent, compared with Rs 2,34,945 crore during 2015-16.

Listing the achievements of the last fiscal, Chief Financial Officer Alok Agarwal said on social media that the company has commissioned the secnd and final phase of its new paraxylene capacity at Jamnagar in Gujarat "making us second largest producer globally."

"Ethane import project has been commissioned and ethane cracking commenced at Dahej (Gujarat)."

"Commercial production has started from our coalbed methane block in Sohagpur," he added.