Aug 26 Reuters Woodside Energy, Australia39;s top independent gas producer, is on track to post a drop in interim earnings on Tuesday, with investors focusing on its dealmaking strategy after the collapse of a 52 billion merger with Santos.

Perthbased Woodside is expected to report an underlying net profit after tax of 1.11 billion for the six months ended June, according to a Visible Alpha consensus cited by Jarden, compared with 1.90 billion reported a year ago.

Woodside39;s portfolio is exgrowth and very highly concentrated in the yettobestarted Scarborough field. This is problematic and necessitates MA, in our view, analysts from Citi said in a research note earlier this month.

The company is scheduled to report its firsthalf results before markets open on August 27.

Woodside recently received primary environmental approvals for its 12.5 billion Scarborough gas project in Western Australia, which is seen as a growth catalyst, with its first LNG cargo likely in 2026.

Despite some of Woodside39;s recent billiondollar deals, including the acquisition of LNG developer Tellurian analysts are uncertain about the energy firm39;s future MA plans to expand its LNG portfolio.

The prevailing share price… along with our cautious stance on oil into 2025 and the uncertainty on the dividend and future MA, we cant yet argue value, analysts at Citi added.

Woodside traded at a PE of 20.2 on Monday based on the last 12 months of earnings, compared to the broader Australian…