FTSE 250 oil and gas group SOCO International said on Wednesday that it saw a whopping 170 per cent increase in production in 2012.

However, shares were down 2.57% at 386.3p in early trading in morning trade as the firm said that it has extended the deadline for its option to sell its 80% interest in SOCO Cabinda in Angola.

The firm, which back in September that it was looking to "create more value for shareholders", is selling its stake to a minority shareholder which owns the remaining 20%.

The company, which has other interests in Vietnam and the Republic of Congo, said that production net to the company's working interest for 2012 averaged 14,757 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd), over 170% higher than in 2011. By January 2013, working interest averaged 18,825 boepd.

The Te Giac Trang (TGT) field in Vietnam performed in line with expectations, with field production ranging from 52-55,000 barrels of oil per day (bopd) in 2012, increasing to 54,702 bopd in January. The ongoing assessment of the TGT field currently estimates resources of 466-958m barrels of oil.

Sales of TGT crude are currently realising a premium of $5-6.50 per barrel to the Brent benchmark crude price.

Meanwhile, production at Ca Ngu Vang in Vietnam averaged 9,760 boepd in January. The firm said that the field needs another well to assess its full potential.

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