Shell completes Gabon, UK North Sea deals

The Hague-based LNG giant Shell has completed the sale of its assets in Gabon and UK North Sea as part of the company’s $30 billion divestment programme put in place after its takeover of BG Group.

Shell said on Wednesday it had finalized the previously announced sale of its entire Gabon onshore oil and gas interests to Assala Energy, a portfolio company of The Carlyle Group, for $628 million.

This transaction consists of all of Shell’s onshore oil and gas operations and related infrastructure in Gabon: five operated fields, participation interest in four non-operated fields, as well as the associated infrastructure of the onshore pipeline system from Rabi to Gamba and the Gamba Southern export terminal.

At completion, some 430 local employees have transferred from Shell to Assala Energy.

In a separate statement, Shell announced it had finalized the sale of a package of UK North Sea assets to Chrysaor for a total of up to $3.8 billion.

The package of assets consists of Shell’s interests in Buzzard, Beryl, Bressay, Elgin-Franklin, J-Area, the Greater Armada cluster, Everest, Lomond and Erskine, plus a 10% stake in Schiehallion.

Shell retains a significant, more focused and strengthened presence in the UK North Sea, to which it remains committed, the company said in its statement.

253 staff transferred from Shell to Chrysaor upon completion of the transaction.

Completion of both of these deals shows the “clear momentum behind Shell’s $30bn divestment programme and is in line with Shell’s drive to simplify the upstream portfolio and re-shape the company into a world class investment,” it said.

LNG World News Staff