North Sea oil and gas powerhouse Ithaca Energy has posted remarkable first-half 2025 results, more than doubling its production compared to last year while slashing emissions – even as government delays and protests shroud its flagship Rosebank project.
Average H1 production soared to 123,600 barrels of oil equivalent per day (kboe/d), up from 53,000 kboe/d in H1 2024. This leap was driven by record quarterly output as Ithaca’s expanded portfolio paid dividends. The group’s emissions intensity plummeted to just 16.9kg CO2e/boe, halved from 33.9kg CO2e/boe a year ago.
Executive chairman Yaniv Friedman stated:
“Our first-half results demonstrate the strength and resilience of our transformed business. With production more than doubling year-on-year and adjusted EBITDAX exceeding $1.1billion, we are delivering on our strategy of disciplined investment and operational excellence.”
Friedman further emphasised the company’s upwardly revised guidance and its focus on maximising long-term value for shareholders, saying: “We continue to remain focused on maximising long-term value creation and returns for our shareholders.”
Luciano Vazquez, CEO, highlighted team discipline in delivering “perfect days” – days with no safety or environmental incidents and exceeding planned production:
“Two of the key elements that have allowed us to achieve this performance…are fundamentally method and focus. This is what we have behind what we call the perfect day,” Vazquez explained. Making daily results visible across the workforce drove engagement and pride, while targeted improvements underpinned robust results.
Navigating Regulatory and Political Headwinds
Ithaca announced its first interim dividend of $167million (£123.77million), due September 26, with the expectation of a second accelerated interim dividend of $133million in December 2025, cementing a $500million full-year target. The financial optimism arrives despite ongoing uncertainty surrounding the Rosebank field after government delays, ongoing protests, and legal challenges.
The company welcomed the UK Government’s new Scope 3 Environmental Impact Assessment guidance, which it says supports the reopening of the consenting process and unlocks “high-value, long-life resource base…that will support UK energy security for decades to come”. Ithaca also remains actively engaged in consultations over the successor regime to the Energy Profits Levy (EPL), which aims to stabilise the sector amid ongoing price shocks.
However, campaigners remain unconvinced. Following a recent court decision, Tessa Khan of Uplift stated: “Rosebank is a bad deal for the UK. Most of its oil will be exported and sold on the international market, doing nothing to lower our energy bills or boost UK energy security. If Equinor and Ithaca Energy try to push Rosebank through despite this ruling, the government must reject it. To do otherwise would undermine its ambitious clean growth plans”.
Despite legal adversity and climate protests, Ithaca’s operational and financial metrics continue to impress. Shareholder returns, production volume, and emissions reduction are all trending up, putting the company in a strong position, even as the Rosebank field’s fate remains uncertain.
