SINGAPORE - KrisEnergy, a Singapore-listed oil and gas production company, saw losses widen in the first quarter of this year.

It posted a net loss of US$18 million (S$22.5 million), from a loss of US$0.5 million a year ago, mainly due to a one-off loss after it redeemed US$120 million in bonds in January.

The group secured a US$100 million revolving credit facility (RCF) in March that matures in March 2016, with an option to be extended for a year and to be increased to a maximum of US$140 million.

Revenue for the group rose 5.5 per cent in the first three months from the previous year to US$21.2 million, as a result of a near-tripling in production to 8,097 barrels of oil equivalent per day and the addition of the Bangora gas field in Bangladesh that KrisEnergy acquired in December last year.

Sales revenue from gas climbed 82.2 per cent in the quarter from a year ago to US$7.6 million, but revenue from the sales of oil and liquids fell 14.2 per cent to US$13.7 million.

"Our production so far this year has surpassed expectations and it is particularly pleasing that Bangora is performing so well," said KrisEnergy's chief executive Keith Cameron.

He added that the wider net loss was "entirely expected".

"Balance sheet management remains core to our strategy and the redemption of the senior secured bonds and securing the new RCF has reduced our financing costs and hence our cost of debt," he said.

"(This) leaves us far more flexibility going forward to manage and optimise our capital structure for growth."