BP is set to sell some of its North Sea oil and gas interests to the Middle East in 2013.
As part of BP's divestment agreement the oil major has signed an agreement with Abu Dhabi energy company, TAQA, to offload a number of central North Sea oil and gas fields for around $1bn. The deal is also expected to bring the further payments of more than $250 million over the next three years depending on output.
TAQA is a relatively new organisation, founded in 2005, with 51% ownership by the state-run Abu Dhabi Water and Electricity Authority. The assets it will acquire include BP’s interests in the owner-operated Maclure, Harding and Devenick fields, along with non-operated interests in the Brae complex of fields and the Braemar field.
Bob Dudley, BP group chief executive, said: “This transaction is in line with BP’s strategy to focus on a smaller number of higher-value assets with long-term growth potential and to continue the simplification of our portfolio with a further reduction of operated infrastructure and wells.”
Although the deal brings BP ever closer to it's $38bn asset sale target, the company says it is committing a further $10bn net to North Sea operations over the next five years, with a particular focus on the UK and Norway.
Currently, BP's production from the North Sea fields averages around 200,000b/d, with an estimated three billion barrels of reserves available from its blocs in the region.