Kistos Reports Transformational 2025 Results with Strong Production Growth and Strategic Expansion into Oman

There is also more to come. Balder Phase V is under way, with first oil from two wells in December 2025 and a third in the first quarter of 2026. The remaining wells are due onstream during 2026, targeting more than 30 mmboe gross. Then Balder Phase VI and King are expected in the second half of 2026, targeting more than 20 mmboe gross.

Most interesting of all, Balder Next was sanctioned in June 2026 and is expected to start up in the fourth quarter of 2027, targeting 86 mmboe of reserves gross. That gives Kistos a longer runway than a simple one-project story.

Oman acquisition changes the shape of Kistos and boosts proforma reserves

If Balder was the delivery story, Oman is the scale story. Kistos says the acquisition of interests in Blocks 3 and 4 and Block 9 onshore Oman adds 25.6 mmboe of 2P reserves net to Kistos, based on operator estimates as at 1 January 2025.

2P reserves means proved plus probable reserves – effectively the company’s best estimate of commercially recoverable volumes. On a proforma basis including Oman, Kistos says 2P reserves rise to 48.8 mmboe from the reported year-end 26.7 mmboe. That is a meaningful jump.

Proforma production is also a lot higher. Kistos reported 2025 average production of 8,940 boepd, but says proforma average production including Oman would have been 18,470 boepd. For 2026, proforma production guidance remains at 19,000 boepd to 21,000 boepd.

That is the heart of the investment case here: Kistos is trying to become a larger, more diversified producer rather than relying too heavily on one region or one development cycle. The snag is that completion is not fully done. Ministerial approvals have been received for Blocks 3 and 4, but publication of the Royal Decree is still awaited, while Block 9 is still subject to outstanding ministerial approval.

So yes, Oman looks attractive, but investors should remember there is still a little bit of paperwork risk between announcement and full completion.

Kistos financing update: why the $300 million bond matters

After the period end, Kistos successfully priced a $300 million senior secured bond with a four-year tenor and a coupon of 9.875%. It was oversubscribed, and the company says it attracted a broad institutional investor base across the Nordics, the UK and elsewhere.

That is both good news and not-so-cheap news. The good bit is access to capital. Oversubscription suggests lenders were comfortable enough with the story to commit fresh money, and Kistos has called its existing KENO01 and KENO02 bonds for repayment.

The less cheerful bit is the coupon. A 9.875% rate is high in absolute terms, which tells you this is not bargain-basement financing. Still, in small and mid-cap energy, availability of capital often matters just as much as price, especially when a company is funding acquisitions and development.

Cash build versus debt: stronger liquidity, but this is not a debt-free story

Kistos says strong operational performance and unhedged commodity exposure have driven a significant cash build. Cash was approximately $209 million at 31 May 2026, rising to approximately $268 million on a near-cash basis.

That near-cash figure includes restricted cash, Oman acquisition deposits of $8 million and a tax receivable of $32 million due in December 2026. It is a healthy liquidity picture, but it is worth reading the small print. Not all of that money is sitting there freely available today in the same way as unrestricted cash.

At year-end 2025, adjusted net debt stood at $76 million, up from $52 million. Capital expenditure was still heavy at $122 million, reflecting investment in Norway. So the balance sheet looks more robust than before, but Kistos is still in a capital-intensive part of its growth journey.

Other assets: Greater Laggan, Q10-A and UK gas storage all matter

There were a few other useful details in the release. The Greater Laggan Area contributed 2,490 boepd in 2025 and exceeded expectations thanks to strong uptime and well performance. Kistos also expects organic growth opportunities there, including Glendronach, infill drilling and further third-party tie-backs to the Shetland Gas Plant.

Q10-A was weaker, with net production of 1,180 boepd versus 2,070 boepd in 2024, due to an extended outage at a third-party tie-back facility. That is a reminder that not all production issues are within Kistos’s direct control.

Meanwhile, Hill Top ended 2025 with 18.0 million therms of trading stock, and Kistos took the investment decision in September 2025 to return the Hole House gas storage caverns to active service by 2028. That should increase working gas storage capacity by 63%. It is not the main event today, but it could become strategically more interesting over time.

What Kistos shareholders should like – and what they should watch

• What looks positive: production growth, first oil from Balder Future, improved reserves, a much bigger proforma production base with Oman, a sharp reduction in statutory losses, and a strong cash build into 2026.
• What needs watching: a high bond coupon, higher adjusted net debt, approval and completion risk around Oman, ongoing heavy capital spending, and exposure to commodity prices because the company highlights unhedged exposure.
• What is not disclosed: the acquisition price for the Oman interests, the detailed contribution of Oman to revenue or EBITDA, and any updated reserve additions following recent project announcements, which are said to be under review.

My view on the Kistos results: a stronger business, but still very much an execution story

On balance, this is a good set of results and an encouraging update. Kistos has moved from talking about project delivery to actually delivering it, and that is a big distinction in the energy market. The Oman move also gives the company more scale and a broader future reserve base, which should make the business less narrow than it was before.

That said, this is not a sleepy income stock. It is still a company building, integrating, funding and developing assets across several regions. If Balder keeps ramping, Oman completes cleanly, and management keeps converting reserves into cash flow, the upside case becomes much easier to believe. If execution slips, the debt and project intensity will matter more quickly.

In short, Kistos looks more substantial than it did a year ago. For shareholders, that is the real significance of this RNS.