Cairn India Limited, the producer of crude from country’s biggest onshore field, on Thursday reported a 23 per cent increase in third-quarter profit of the current financial year. It has registered a net profit of Rs 290.96 crore in October-December compared with Rs 236.42 crore in the corresponding period previous year. The rise in net is because of boosting production from the Barmer field in Rajasthan.

Cairn results seem to have gone above the predictions made by a median estimate of 17 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg News. It predicted Cairn’s third quarter profit at Rs 213 crore.

The Indian subsidiary of UK-based Cairn Energy recorded a more than double turnover of Rs 495.46 crore compared to Rs 210.82 crore a year ago. In the corresponding period of the previous quarter the consolidated profit was Rs 236.40 crore, while the consolidate revenue was Rs 210.8 crore due to reversal of deferred tax and provisions for Ravva PTRR.

At present, Cairn is production close to 20,000 barrels a day. The field in Barmer that started commercial production in August last year, is expected to account for 20 per cent of the national crude production by 2011.

“Crude oil sales to Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) commenced as the government allowed private refiners to qualify as additional off takers of the Rajasthan crude. The firm has delivered four parcels to Mangalore Refinery & Petrochemicals Ltd and two parcels to RIL in the third quarter and trial parcels to IOC will commence soon,” Cairn said in a statement released on Thursday.

The results are better than expected but we should carefully look at the production ramp up. It’s producing only 15,000 barrels a day from Barmer. It is very important to look forward to Mangala production also, said Deepak Pareekh, analyst at Angel Broking.

The company in its statement has said that Mangala development drilling progresses is as planned. 43 development wells have been drilled, out of which 33 have been completed to support production ramp up. Cairn holds 70 per cent interest in the Rajasthan block RJ-ON-90/1, where Mangala is the largest of the 25 oil and gas finds.

“The ongoing development drilling confirms the excellent quality of the reservoir and reinforces our conviction of the long term potential of the Rajasthan fields. The construction of the crude oil pipeline from MPT to Salaya is a significant achievement. This pipeline will provide the critical infrastructure needed to connect the oil fields in the Barmer basin to the markets,” said Rahul Dhir, managing director and chief executive officer at Cairn India.

The average oil price realisation in the third quarter was $73.8 per barrel and for the corresponding quarter of the previous year was $56.4 per barrel. Cairn India scrip at the Bombay Stock Exchange on Thursday rose 1.2 per cent to Rs 270.65. The stock has advanced 57 per cent in the past year compared with a 76 percent increase in the benchmark Sensitive Index.