Noble Agrees Tamar Field Selldown

US independent Noble Energy announced January 29 it had signed a definitive agreement to divest a 7.5% working interest in the Tamar gas field offshore Israel, to Tamar Petroleum Ltd.

Noble will receive cash proceeds of some $560mn, plus 38.5mn shares of Tamar Petroleum.  In total, Noble estimates the total value of the transaction at some $800mn, as at close on January 29 . It said this followed its initial divestment of 3.5% of the Tamar field in mid-2016.  Combined proceeds from both transactions total nearly $1.25bn, it said, of which almost $1bn as cash. 

Noble CEO David L Stover said: "This transaction supports our commitment to sell down our Tamar interest in accordance with the government of Israel's Natural Gas Regulatory Framework.  It highlights the strong value of our world-class Levant Basin assets, while providing additional upside exposure from our equity interest in Tamar Petroleum.  These assets are some of the world's most attractive energy investment opportunities, with margins competitive to the best U.S. onshore oil plays and a stable, long-term cash flow profile.  Our team is doing an excellent job operating Tamar reliably at capacity while developing Leviathan which is on track to deliver first gas sales by the end of 2019."

The effective date of the transaction is January 1, 2018. Closing is expected by end-1Q2018, subject to Tamar Petroleum's debt financing and customary approvals, terms and conditions. 

Noble Energy currently operates the Tamar field with a 32.5% working interest so, following closing of the transaction, it will retain a 25% interest and remain the operator. 

Tamar Petroleum is a publicly traded company founded in July 2017 that held a 9.25% interest in the Tamar field prior to the announced transaction. After the transaction, it will hold 16.75%.