Serica Energy has lowered its production forecast for the current year following output delays at its Triton floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) unit.

In its 2024 results, the British firm’s oil production fell from 40,100 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd) in 2023 to 34,600 boepd, of which 64% was gas.

It said that this output was impacted by unscheduled downtime at the Triton FPSO.

In this period, its revenue fell for $917m in 2023 to $727m and its operating costs increased from $273m to $330m.

Furthermore, its profit before tax dropped by 57% to $160m, which it said reflects "lower volumes sold and slightly reduced realised pricing".

In Q1 2025, Serica said that it has produced 27,600 boepd, which was reduced due to the shutdown of the Triton FSPO in February and March.

It added that maintenance on Triton has been brought forward from the summer and the unit production is expected to resume in June with "no further planned shutdowns in 2025".

In its outlook, Serica amended its production guidance for 2025 to between 33,000 and 37,000 boepd, with its capital expenditure and opex guidance remaining unchanged at between $220m-250m and $330m respectively.

Following this announcement, Reuters reported that shares at Serica fell by as much as 7.5%, although this has now increased by over 8% on its opening price.

Chief executive officer at Serica, Chris Cox, said: "The highly positive results of the drilling campaign at Triton are not yet being reflected in our production and cashflow due to ongoing issues at the Triton FPSO. Our frustration is exacerbated by the fact that the Triton area alone could be delivering up to 30,000 boepd net to Serica with the addition of the wells already drilled.

"We are confident, after detailed discussions with the operator, Dana, of the work required to fix the issues, and we are pleased that the joint venture has agreed a plan to take advantage of the current downtime to bring forward the maintenance work scope originally scheduled for July. This removes the need for a summer maintenance shutdown, which combined with the activities undertaken should significantly increase uptime going forward.

"I have previously stated my confidence in the excellence of the Serica subsurface team and the potential of the rocks across our portfolio, and we have increasing clarity on the work needed to convert that potential into shareholder value."

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