Seplat Energy Plc reported a nearly fivefold increase in net profit for the first half (H1) of 2026, driven by higher crude price realizations, expanding onshore production, and early debt cancellation that trimmed finance costs.
Profit after tax reached $164.0 million for the six months through June 30, up 498.1% from $27.4 million in the prior-year period.
Revenue expanded 30.2% year-on-year to $1.8 billion, supported by a 29.7% rise in average realized crude prices to $94.13 per barrel and a 3.7% increase in total working interest production to 139.5 thousand barrels of oil equivalent per day (kboepd).
The performance enabled the board to declare a total H1 2026 dividend distribution of 21.0 U.S. cents per share, including a Q2 payout of 12.0 cents comprising a 5.0 cent core dividend and a 7.0 cent special dividend.
Onshore Gains Offset Offshore Disruptions
Revenue gains were spearheaded by crude oil sales, which rose 26.4% year-on-year to $1.6 billion and accounted for 89.8% of total revenue. Natural gas sales grew 7.9% to $102.1 million on higher realized pricing ($3.13/mscf), while Natural Gas Liquids (NGL) sales surged 8.4x to $83.4 million as production volumes expanded to 2.0 million barrels.
Production dynamics reflected a divergence between onshore and offshore operations:
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Onshore Strength: Onshore asset production rose 10.7% to 60.7 kboepd, supported by new well completions, contributions from the ANOH gas plant, and consistent uptime on the Trans Forcados Pipeline (TFP).
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Offshore Headwinds: Offshore volumes contracted 1.1% due to ongoing platform restoration work at the Yoho field. Additionally, third-party operational damage to the Oso–BRT pipeline caused unscheduled downtime for gas and NGL output late in the second quarter.
Cost Optimization and Balance Sheet Deleveraging
Gross profit margins widened to 44.8% from 34.7% as non-production costs moderated. Depreciation, Depletion, and Amortization (DD&A) charges declined following a reserve base reassessment in late 2025, offsetting a 30.4% surge in direct production costs ($398.0 million) tied to offshore asset maintenance.
General and Administrative (G&A) expenses fell 10.4% to $121.0 million, expanding operating margins to 36.0%. Below the operating line, net finance costs fell 15.2% after Seplat executed the early settlement of its $200 million Advanced Payment Facility.
Effective tax rates moderated to 71.5% from 90.6% in H1 2025, allowing annualized Return on Equity (ROE) to improve to 17.7% from 3.0%.
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