LONDON (Reuters) - British oil and gas company BG Group L:BG reported a 6 percent fall in first-quarter operating profit as it struggled with lower output, but it beat analyst estimates which will help reassure investors after its chief executive resigned this week.
Operating profit came to $2 billion (1.18 billion pounds) while net income fell 3 percent year on year to $1.15 billion, both results ahead of analyst consensus.
First-quarter exploration and production (E&P) volumes fell 4 percent, but the FTSE 100 L:FTSE company reiterated that it expected to reach the lower end of its 2014 output forecast.
The company has cut its output forecast several times in the last two years hit by production troubles in Egypt. [ID:nL5N0L10FU]
Production in Egypt was hit hard by a poorly performing reservoir and high diversions to the local market, reducing output by 35 percent versus the fourth quarter of 2013.
BG said it was expecting "very limited" cargoes from its Egyptian plant in the foreseeable future, although one shipment was planned for the second quarter.
The company is in the process of finding a new chief executive, an appointment which will determine how the company reviews its assets. The firm said it will not provide an outlook for 2015 until next year.
(Reporting by Karolin Schaps, Editing by Paul Sandle and Jason Neely)