PARIS (Reuters) - Oil and gas group Total reiterated its production target for the three years up to 2020, kept its target range for capital investments during the period, and said it would use the favourable, low-cost environment for more projects.
Total said its upgraded portfolio, following a recent string of acquisitions and discoveries, had a rich pipeline of major projects to be approved by 2020. Those projects should add more than 700 kboe/d of production.
This will contribute to 5 percent average growth in production from 2017 to 2022, it said in a strategy and outlook presentation given to investors in New York.
"Over the past three years, Total has demonstrated a track record of delivering on its objectives including production growth, cost reduction, capital discipline, and asset sales," the French company said in a statement.
It added that with Brent oil prices at $60 per barrel, its cash flow was expected to increase by $7 billion from 2017 to 2020 and return on equity to increase to 12 percent, which would enable it to continue to reward shareholders.
As part of its previously announced $5 billion share buy back programme from 2018 to 2020, Total said it plans to buy back $1.5 billion of shares in this year.
(Reporting by Bate Felix; Editing by Sudip Kar-Gupta)