Premier Oil Plc, an explorer operating on four continents, said it would meet or exceed its production forecast for the year. The first well brought into production at the Solan project in the North Sea has pumped more than 14,000 barrels of oil a day and a second well at the field will start up by the middle of the year, Premier said in a statement on Wednesday, Bloomberg reported. The company’s total oil and gas output was 57,300 barrels of oil equivalent a day from Jan. 1 to April 30 and is on track to be at or above the upper end of its forecast of 65,000 to 70,000 barrels for the year. The company’s shares rose as much as 6.8% to 74.5 pence, before paring gains in line with the wider market. They traded at 69.75 pence at 8:33 a.m. in London. Premier’s statement is positive, “with strong productivity from the E.ON assets and Solan the key driver,” Exane BNP Paribas analyst Alex Topouzoglou said in a note.
