Jadestone Energy (JSE) made it through 2022 with a healthy balance sheet and sales only slightly behind the year before. This is a low bar for an energy company given the price environment, but the Asia-Pacific-focused producer had to shut down its key oilfield, Montara, in August, and only brought it back into production last month. This was due to a leak in a ballast tank, just two months after a storage tank leak. The authorities are on high alert as Montara, under previous ownership, was the site of one of Australia’s worst oil spills, in 2009.
Chief executive Paul Blakeley told Investors’ Chronicle it was a “long and painful process” to get Montara back in action. He added that the rigorous repairs and checks completed after the leaks meant the operation was now in better shape. Nonetheless, the company is working hard to broaden its portfolio. This will happen quite quickly, through the construction of a new gas operation in Indonesia, Akatara, and a handful of smaller acquisitions last year.