Australian oil and gas producer Santos Ltd posted third-quarter sales revenue of A$420.3 million ($311.3 million) — its highest quarterly revenue since 2001 — while output fell 11 per cent on the year ago period.

Santos said revenue for the three months ended September 30 was nine per cent up on the year ago period and 26 per cent higher than the previous quarter.
“The higher average oil price for the quarter more than offset the impact of lower sales volumes,” the company said in a statement to the Australian Stock Exchange.
Adelaide-based Santos said the average oil price for the quarter was A$57.36 per barrel, up 34 per cent from the third quarter last year.
   It said the main reason for a fall in third quarter output to 13 million barrels of oil equivalent was lower contracted demand for Cooper Basin gas and the impact of the January 1 fire at its Moomba gas processing plant in central Australia.
Santos also reaffirmed its 2004 output at 45 million to 46 million barrels of oil equivalent (boe).
The target is 16 per cent below last year’s output, but the company has said it expects output to jump to 70 million boe in 2006 if new gas projects come on stream.
Most of Santos’s output is currently from the mature central Australian Cooper Basin petroleum fields, but it is is looking to Indonesia and other new offshore projects to lift production.