Getech swings to loss as oil firms cut back

31st Mar 2010 08:26

Getech, which provides geological data to assist with oil exploration, fell into losses in the six months to January 31 as big firms cut back on expenditure amid uncertainty over oil prices.The firm posted a pre-tax loss of £392,000, compared with a profit of £187,000 over the same period the previous year as revenues slumped to £1.18m from £2.42m.While 'disappointed' with the loss, the firm said clients seem to be returning to normal buying patterns in line with the improvement in prices'We suffered from continued restrictions in major oil company budgets that had been set for the calendar year,' said chairman Peter Stephens, though he added that the loss was not as bad as that of the prior of the six month period when the company sustained pre-tax losses of £815,000.'The oil price appears to be less volatile and has remained generally above $70 per barrel for several months, and we believe we are now seeing a return towards normality of client buying patterns,' he said. 'The gas price, however, has not rallied in the same way as the oil price due in part to a world surplus of liquefied natural gas.'Getech has strong interests in the US gas sector after its acquisition of the assets of Denver-based Lisle Gravity in 2008, including the largest commercially available library of US gravity data.Stephens said the company is confident about medium and long-term prospects.'I think we would have to be profitable for the year as a whole before we could restate the dividend,' said chief executive Raymond Wolfson.Getech scrapped its final dividend after swinging to a full-year loss last year.