OMV Acquires Shares in North Sea from Statoil

Norway’s Statoil clinched a deal with Austria’s OMV to divest shares in the North Sea.

‘Statoil reduces its ownership share in Gullfaks from 70% to 51% and from 75% to 51% in Gudrun, and retains its operatorships on both fields. Statoil also exit the non-core, non-operated Schiehallion and Rosebank fields,’ reads the note published by the Norwegian company on Thursday. 

OMV will acquired 19% in the producing Gullfaks field and 24% in the Gudrun field; both offshore oil and gas fields on the Norwegian Continental Shelf. In addition, OMV took over 30% in Rosebank and 5.88% in Schiehallion, both located west of the Shetland Islands and assets where OMV already holds a stake in. 

“The transaction is a key part of OMV’s strategy of focusing on exploration and production in politically stable markets and will be a substantial factor in achieving our 2016 targets. We are thereby bolstering our position in the heart of our North Sea growth region,” OMV CEO Gerhard Roiss commented in another note.

The effective date of the transaction is January 1, 2013. No adjustments for OMV were due at closing for the year 2013. 

According to Statoil, the transaction will enable it to redeploy around USD 7 billion of capital expenditure.