Origin Energy : Shareholder Review & Annual Report 2016

Delivering on our commitments

During the past 12 months, we have taken decisive action to stabilise the business in the face of low oil prices, not least repaying $4 billion of debt to reduce our adjusted net debt to $9.1 billion.

Asset sales totalling $484 million were announced during the period, in addition to the sale of Origin's interest in Contact Energy for proceeds of $1.6 billion. The sale of additional assets remains on track to meet the $800 million target by the end of FY2017.

In the 18 months to the end of FY2016, we reduced our workforce by 28 per cent, or 2,500 people, as capital projects were completed or stopped, some activities such as overseas exploration and development discontinued and operational efficiency improved. This will support a continued reduction in cash costs into FY2017.

Our Energy Markets business achieved a $100 million operating cost reduction target from financial year 2014 levels, and also reduced capital expenditure by $50 million in FY2016, driving an improvement in Underlying Return on Capital Employed (ROCE) from 9.6 per cent to 10.1 per cent.

As the upstream operator of Australia Pacific LNG, Integrated Gas delivered more than $1 billion per annum in recurring upstream cost reductions. We have also taken action to reduce exposure to low oil prices through the purchase of put options over 15 million barrels of oil for FY2017 at prices of US$40 per barrel and A$55 per barrel.