Chesapeake posts quarterly loss on output drop, lower gas prices

(Reuters) -Natural gas producer Chesapeake Energy on Monday reported a loss for the second quarter, compared to a year-ago profit, as production declined and prices remained under pressure.

Total average realized price, including hedges, fell 6% amid lukewarm demand due to hotter-than-expected winter and a build-up in storage.

In response to the declining prices, Chesapeake, along with rivals like EQT and Coterra Energy, had curtailed their production earlier this year.

Chesapeake, which is on the cusp of becoming the biggest natural gas producer pending its acquisition of Southwestern Energy, said production during the April-June quarter fell 24.9% to 2.75 billion cubic feet per day (bcf/d).

The U.S. Energy Information Administration expects domestic natural gas production to decline for the remainder of 2024. If the agency's projection is right, 2024 would be the first time output declined since 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic cut demand for the fuel.

Chesapeake lowered its 2024 capital expenditure forecast by about 4% to the range of $1.2 to $1.3 billion, while it reduced its production expense expenditure by about 8%.

The company, which became a pure-play natural gas producer in 2022, said it expects third-quarter production to range between 2.57 bcf/d and 2.67 bcf/d.

Chesapeake's net loss was $227 million for the three months ended June 30, compared with a profit of $391 million, in the year-ago quarter.

On an adjusted basis, it posted a net income of 1 cent per share, compared with analysts' average estimate of break-even, according to LSEG data.

(Reporting by Sourasis Bose in Bengaluru; @)