Pieridae Energy Ltd. raised its net operating income guidance for 2020 to be in the range of C$80 million to C$110 million, citing increased production due to its recent acquisition of upstream and midstream assets in the Alberta foothills and lower per-barrel operating costs.

The top end of the range is 10 times higher than Pieridae's net operating income of C$10 million before it acquired the foothills assets, the company said in a Dec. 12 news release.

The foothills acquisition also doubled the company's daily gas production, providing most of the needed gas supply for the first train at the Goldboro LNG facility, Pieridae CEO Alfred Sorensen said. Pieridae has approved a C$32 million pre-final investment decision capital budget and a C$16 million development expense budget for the proposed LNG facility in 2020.

Pieridae expects its 2020 production to range from 40,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day to 50,000 boe/d, representing a 230% to 290% increase from its exit production during the third quarter, with a mix of approximately 80% natural gas and 20% liquids. Pieridae said it also plans on increasing its gas production up to 800 MMcf/d to provide more supply for Goldboro LNG's first train.

Average per barrel operating costs are forecast to be C$10.50 to C$11.50 per barrel of oil equivalent. The company expects to hedge 55% to 65% of its production on a barrels-of-oil-equivalent-per-day basis for 2020.

Pieridae is a Calgary, Alberta-based company that focuses on the development of integrated energy-related activities.