Demand for oil boosts Getech’s profits
PROFITS are up for Getech as the hunt for new oil and gas reserves continues to heat up worldwide.
The Yorkshire-based group, which specialises in mapping areas targeted for oil exploration by industry giants such as Shell, BP and ExxonMobil, today reported a 11.7% year-on-year increase in pre-tax profits for the year ended July 31 from £0.81m to £0.9m.
Revenue rose by 15.9% to £4.13m on the previous year. The company is proposing a final dividend of 0.7p to make 1.3p for the year. Last year it was 1.2p.
Among the firm’s operational highlights was the sale of Russian Arctic Shelf data worth £900,000 and the decision by IP Group to increase its investment in Getech by 20%.
It also recently signed “significant” new licences woth £500,000 for its data as oil companies show signs of increasing their investment in exploration.
Commenting on the firm’s future outlook, Peter Stephens, non-executive chairman of Getech, said: “We completed a number of significant new trading arrangements during the year. Most notable were additional Russian marketing agreements covering various regions within the Former Soviet Union, and new agreements for marketing gravity and magnetic data.
“An agreement under which Getech will undertake gravity data surveys in Brazil and Chile was also signed and new studies in the Taoudenni Basin (Mauritania and Mali) were initiated.”
He added: “The market for gravity and magnetic data continued to be strong and revenue from data licences in the second half of the year exceeded expectations. In addition, a number of new proprietary geophysics projects were awarded in the second half of the year.”
Mr Stephens said that the group’s geological activities had increased in size and specialism and that it had around 20 specialists now working in the field.
The company has also expanded its office accommodation at Nicholson House following an increase of staff numbers to 50.
Mr Stephens said that the future outlook was very positive for the firm and that Getech was continuing to seek suitable acquistion targets.
“We anticipate that the demand for gravity and magnetic data will continue to remain strong. With the acquisition of additional data marketing rights during the year, we expect this area to continue to provide a major revenue stream,” he added.
“The feedback from our latest geological studies is very positive and we are optimistic about sales in the coming year.
“Marketing of the South Atlantic study (our largest study to date) commenced in September 2008 and initial reaction to this product is very favourable. Further major studies over East Africa, CircumߛArctic, Taoudenni Basin and South East China are planned to be completed and marketed in the first half of 2008/9.”
Getech has its origins as a research group at Leeds University, Department of Earth Sciences (now part of the School of Earth and Environment).
It formed in 1986 by initiating the compilation of gravity data for the continent of Africa, supported by a group of international oil and mining company sponsors.
In 1996, Getech opened an office in Houston, Texas and in 2000 spun out from Leeds University as a private company.
Its subsequent business success and the formation of PSEG in 2004 resulted in the flotation of the company on AIM in September 2005 – the first spin-out company from the university to float on AIM.
