Woodside’s second-quarter production totaled 16.3 million barrels of oil equivalent (mmboe), up from 15.6 mmboe in the first quarter but down from 17.5 mmboe a year earlier, the company said in a statement.

Woodside maintained its recently delayed March 2012 start-up target date for its flagship Pluto LNG project and also maintained its recently trimmed full-year production guidance at 62-64 mmboe.  

Woodside’s A$14.9 billion ($15.8 billion) 4.3 million ton per annum Pluto LNG project was previously due to come online in August, and so far has been delayed about one year from its original targeted start-up date.

Woodside also said that despite discovering gas at its Xeres-1 well in May, it has not yet made a decision on whether or not to order long-lead items for a second train at the Pluto project. 

The company had indicated earlier this year that it would begin ordering long-lead items for the Pluto 2 train if both Xeres-1 and Martin-1 wells, where Woodside struck gas in March, resulted in gas finds.