Ithaca Energy dividend guidance for the full year has been raised to $500m–$530m after the North Sea producer reported record second-quarter output and strong first-half cash generation. The interim dividend was set at $255m, or $0.1542 per share, according to Kalkine.
Production reached a record 131,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boe/d) in the second quarter. The H1 2026 average was 128,000 boe/d, according to Investing.com, keeping the company firmly on track to meet its full-year target of 120,000–130,000 boe/d.
Adjusted first-half EBITDAX topped $1.1bn. Operating costs came in at around $18 a barrel at the mid-point of guidance, better than expected. Free cash flow for the half reached approximately $500m, and the company ended the period with $1.9bn of available liquidity and leverage of 0.49 times adjusted EBITDAX.
Ithaca Energy Dividend Guidance and Balance Sheet
The upgraded Ithaca Energy dividend guidance compares with $500m paid in full-year 2025, when adjusted EBITDAX reached $2.0bn, according to Kalkine. The company has also moved to a 50/50 split between half-year and full-year payments, from a prior one-third/two-thirds schedule.
The balance sheet strengthened during H1 2026. Adjusted net debt fell to $1,018.7m, down from $1,258.2m in the prior period. During the half, Ithaca completed a private placement of a further €155m of 5.5% senior notes due 2031, citing strong investor demand, according to a results announcement reproduced by DirectorsTalk.
Shares rose 6% on the day of the results and are up 57% year-to-date, according to Investing.com.
The company also guided 2026 producing-asset capital expenditure at $600m–$700m. According to a Yahoo Finance report on Ithaca’s FY 2025 results call, management described 2026 as expected to be the last material year of spend on Rosebank before capital expenditure falls as the field moves toward production.
Rosebank Approaches Final Execution Phase
The Rosebank development, roughly 130 km north-west of the Shetland Islands in water depths of around 1,100 metres, is entering its final execution phase. Ithaca holds a 20% stake; Adura Operations Limited, formed in December 2025 when Equinor and Shell combined their UK offshore operations, holds 80% and operates the field.
The operator has narrowed first production to the first half of 2027, with plateau reached through that summer. A UK government environmental assessment document (PRA/352) states Phase 1 start-up is expected in Q4 2026; Ithaca’s own guidance points to the first half of 2027. The article uses Ithaca’s stated guidance.
Phase 1 targets recoverable resources of an estimated 245 million barrels of oil, with total Phase 1 and 2 recoverable resources of around 300 million barrels, according to Ithaca Energy’s own Rosebank press release. The gross Phase 1 development investment is estimated at $3.8bn, according to Westwood Energy.
Ithaca said it has more than 200 million boe of resources being advanced towards investment decisions over 2026 and 2027, giving the portfolio further depth beyond Rosebank.
Government Policy Remains the Swing Factor
Any expansion of the UK government’s North Sea policy remains central to Ithaca’s longer-term production outlook. Duncan Ferris, analyst at Freetrade, said all eyes are on the Burnham government to give the project the nod, ‘amid considerable pressure in both directions from oil and gas lobbyists and climate groups.’
Ferris added that shareholders will enjoy the elevated payout in the meantime. ‘With operational performance looking so healthy and prices so high, Ithaca’s confidence to pump dividend guidance north of half a billion is undoubtedly an encouraging sign,’ he said.
A regulatory decision on Rosebank is the binary event that would set the next leg of the investment case. Until that decision lands, the upgraded Ithaca Energy dividend guidance and a debt-to-EBITDAX ratio below 0.5 times give shareholders a well-capitalised holding position.
