i3 Energy PLC (AIM:I3E, TSX:ITE, OTC:ITEEF) chief executive Majid Shafiq described 2022 as “a year of exceptional performance” as the company released a production update and laid out its capital budget for 2023.
“The success of our 2022 drilling program in Canada has continued to de-risk our growth strategy in certain key development assets within our portfolio and we are confident that our 2023 capital program will be equally successful and should result in production growth of up to 13% in 2023,” Shafiq said in a statement.
Today, i3 reported strong operational results and increased its dividend for 2023.
It confirmed a new company production record at just over 24,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd) in December, exceeding previous estimates.
The company detailed its 2023 capital budget of US$64.05mln, comprising plans for 23 new wells to be drilled across its portfolio in Canada.
For 2023, i3 forecasts annual average production of 22,250 to 23,000 boepd which would mark a year-over-year increase of between 10% and 13%, and it estimates hitting a peak rate of around 26,000 boepd in the upcoming period.
Shafiq added: “We are also pleased to offer year-on-year dividend growth from £3.4mln in 2021, to £15.4mln this year and a minimum pay-out of £24.5mln in 2023."