CNOOC posts 15.5 percent rise in first-quarter production on Nexen acquisition

HONG KONG (Reuters) - China's top offshore oil and gas producer CNOOC Ltd <0883.HK> on Tuesday posted a 15.5 percent increase in its first quarter production, thanks largely to its $15.1 billion acquisition of Canadian energy firm Nexen in February last year. Total net output rose to 108.1 million barrels of oil equivalents (boe) in the first three months of this year, the company said in a filing with the Hong Kong stock exchange. Excluding the contribution from Nexen, production was largely flat at 88.8 million boe. Revenue rose 6.9 percent year-on-year to 59.15 billion yuan ($9.50 billion) in the first quarter as realized oil prices dipped 5.1 percent to $104.63 per barrel, CNOOC said. The company does not report quarterly profit figures. CNOOC last month posted an 11.4 percent slide in its 2013 net profit, lagging analysts' forecasts, as it struggled to deliver production growth and control costs amid weakening crude prices. (Reporting by Charlie Zhu; Editing by Miral Fahmy)