Tullow Oil PLC has reported a remarkable surge in profits from its Ghana operations, with a profit before tax reaching $411 million in the first six months of 2024.

This represents a staggering over 50% increase compared to the $266 million posted during the same period in 2023. This was contained in Tullow’s Oil half-year results released for investors around the world on August 7 2024.

The company also paid $144 million in taxes to the government of Ghana, covering operations from January to June 2024.

This profit is the highest recorded by any of Tullow’s subsidiaries this year.

Notably, this financial achievement comes at a time when Tullow is in a dispute with the Ghana Revenue Authority over tax payments owed for its operations between 2022 and 2023.

Operationally, Ghana’s offshore oil facilities delivered a strong performance, maintaining a high efficiency level with 97% uptime during the first half of 2024.

The Jubilee oil field produced an average of 90,100 barrels of oil per day, slightly below expectations. However, production from the Tweneboah Enyenra Ntomme (TEN) oil fields exceeded forecasts, averaging 19,000 barrels per day.

Gas production in Ghana averaged 6,500 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd) in the first half of 2024. The existing Gas Sales Agreement, which sets the price at $3.00 per million British thermal units (mmbtu), will remain in place until the fourth quarter of 2025.

“Discussions are ongoing to explore additional opportunities for selling gas to third parties, potentially creating a significant long-term revenue stream.