Premier sells off UK North Sea oil fields to Hungary’s MOL for £76m
PREMIER Oil yesterday announced that it had sold its minority stakes in three UK North Sea fields to Hungarian oil and gas group MOL for $130m (£76.1m), as part of its $300m divestment programme.
The FTSE 250-quoted oil explorer said its stakes in the Scott, Telford and Rochelle fields collectively produced around 3,700 barrels of oil per day, equating to six per cent of group output.
“This sale will allow our team in the UK North Sea to focus principally on our operated Solan and Catcher developments, and is a further step towards achieving our targeted disposals for the year,” said chief executive Tony Durrant, who replaced longstanding boss Simon Lockett last week.
Deutsche Bank analysts said that while the sale price was at a discount to their estimates, the deal made Premier’s UK portfolio “a more focused entity” and gave “confidence that despite a period of leadership change, delivery of key targets are on track”.
Stellar Energy Advisors acted for Premier on the deal, which was subject to government approval.