Acquisitions NEWS

Halliburton has added new technology to its product line. Oil field service company has acquired from Westerton a new portfolio of electro-mechanical downhole cutting tools and related tubing punches. This equipment will offer a safe and reliable alternative to operators for conventional pipe recovery and intervention across the well lifecycle. It will not only reduce the cost of construction of new wells but also extend the life of old wells.

Neptune Energy has decided to acquire interests in some of Wintershall Dea's oil and gas fields in Emsland and the Grafschaft Bentheim. This agreement will help Neptune increase its existing interest in the Bramberge, Meppen and Annaveen oilfields. This final transaction will take place after regulatory and partner approvals. Its expected completion is in the third quarter of 2019.

A private equity firm, Arcline Investment Management has announced the acquisition of BHGE's Reciprocating Compression division. This division manufactures and services mission-critical compression and engine systems. "We plan to aggressively invest in our long-standing, loyal employee base so that they can support every brand of our equipment operating in the field", commented Arcline. Arcline currently has $1.5 billion of capital under management.

PTT Exploration and Production Public Co Ltd (PTTEP) has decided to acquire Partex Holding BV. The acquisition will be worth approximately US$622mn. This decision will help PTTEP expand in Oman and open the gates for future investment opportunities in the Middle East. "This acquisition will allow us to create a new business partnership with both national oil companies of Oman and the UAE,” said PTTEP's CEO.

Lukoil has announced an agreement with New Age M12 Holdings Limited. The company has acquired 25% interest in the Marine XII license in the Republic of Congo. President of PJSC Lukoil said, "Entering this project is in line with our M&A strategy. The project is characterized by explored reserves, substantial production growth potential, access to well-developed infrastructure and it also fits our technological expertise". This agreement is worth $800 million.

The Norwegian firm Prosafe has signed a deal to acquire Bermuda-based Floatel International. Amid the need for consolidation in the market facing overcapacity, Prosafe will create the “world’s largest” offshore accommodation company at Floatel. The value of the deal is undisclosed yet and the new company will be named as Prosafe SE. Following the deal’s completion by Q3, Prosafe shareholders will own 55% shares, with Floatel shareholders owning 45%.

Toshiba Corp. will sell its over 20-year liquefaction rights at the Freeport LNG project to Total. The company will pay $815 million to the French major and is expecting that the deal will be finalized by March 2020. This acquisition is in line with Total's plan to become one of the world’s biggest LNG players in the future. Total presently is the second-largest private global LNG player.

An oil and gas pipeline welding company Pipeline Technique has been bought by a private-equity firm Blue Water Energy (BWE). BWE has bought this Huntly-headquartered company from Dutch business Heerema Marine Contractors (HMC). The exact value of the deal has been kept undisclosed. BWE informed that the management team of Pipeline Technique will be retained.

India's HPCL is planning the acquisition of MRPL which has hit a cash hurdle at the moment. The parent company of HPCL, ONGC, wants to go for cash instead of a share-swap, informed the sources. ONGC acquired HPCL for Rs 36,915 crore last year. However, all this time HPCL has been talking about the acquisition through the Oil Ministry and media and is not yet ready with a concrete proposal.

Partners Group, a Swiss private equity firm will acquire CapeOmega for nearly $1.34bn. CapeOmega is a Norwegian midstream infrastructure company which was incorporated in 2014. MD of Partners Group Private Infrastructure Europe said, "Partners Group welcomes the opportunity to partner with a well-respected and experienced management team to realise the associated infrastructure expansion potential for CapeOmega in one of Europe’s key natural gas supply hubs”.

Energy giant Shell has informed about its ongoing talk with BP to procure its Shearwater oil and gas field stakes in the British North Sea. The cost of acquisition will be $250 million. In Shearwater, Shell holds 28% stake, BP has 27.5% and the remaining 44.5% stakes are held by ExxonMobil. The gas export capacity of Shearwater at the time of peak production is expected to be 70,000 boped.

Northern Oil and Gas signed a definitive agreement to acquire the Williston Basin properties of VEN Bakken. The assets which will be acquired by the company are expected to produce approx 6,600 boed during the second half of 2019. The seller is the wholly-owned subsidiary of Flywheel Bakken. CEO of Northern said, "This transaction furthers our stated goals of allocating capital to generate free cash flow in low commodity prices".

According to the reports, the Khobar-based Arabian Drilling Company (ADC) is ready to acquire the drilling business of Schlumberger in Saudi. Arabian Drilling Company is an alliance between the Industrialization & Energy Services Company which is a Saudi Joint Stock company and Services Petroliers Schlumberger S.A. Further, the ADC website confirms that Services Petroliers Schlumberger owns the rest 49 %.

Chrysaor Holdings Limited will acquire the business of ConocoPhillips in the UK. After this acquisition, Chrysaor will become the largest oil and gas producer in the UK North Sea with approximately 177,000 boepd production in 2018. The assets of ConocoPhillips includes over 280 MMboe proved and probable (2P) oil and gas reserves. CEO of Chrysaor said, "Acquiring ConocoPhillips UK accelerates our strategy and further strengthens our positions".

The acquisition of one of the biggest oil fields in the West African country in 2011 has now been surrounded by controversy. A court in Nigeria has ordered the arrest of two former ministers and others allegedly connected with the deal's illegal payments. Parties to the transaction, Shell and Eni are accused of settling the dispute over the oil field in an unlawful manner.

Chevron has acquired Anadarko Petroleum Corp in a $33 billion deal. Anadarko has been a trailblazer of the US shale revolution which made the nation the world's biggest oil producer. Anadarko's decision to rather agree for this deal than capitalize on oil prices exemplifies the challenges faced by many shale producers. The shale producers like Pioneer, Diamondback Energy and Concho are already facing pressure from the investors to improve profitability.

Crestwood Niobrara has acquired 50% interests in Jackalope Gas Gathering Services from Williams. The acquisition is worth approximately $485 million. Crestwood went ahead to acquire William's interest as a part of its plan to expand its operations in the core growth basins. "We would like to thank Williams for what has been a very strong partnership over the last several years ", said Crestwood's CEO.

A news report has revealed that Korean National Oil Company (KNOC) is looking to divest its stakes in Dana Petroleum. KNOC has received offers from ten investment banks for the same. The Korean firm's 30% stakes in Dana is assumed to be worth more than £410 million. The aggressive acquisition of Dana took place in 2010 but now, KNOC wants to sell it in order reduce its debt. Western Isles is operated by Dana and it started production in 2017.