EnQuest Buys Bentley Find

EnQuest plc has announced that it has signed a deal with Whalsay Energy Holdings Limited to purchase its entire 100 percent equity interest in the P1078 license, which contains the Bentley heavy-oil discovery.

This find is located within 10 miles of EnQuest’s existing Kraken and Bressay operated interests, offering further long-term potential development opportunities and other synergies, the company noted. Under the deal, EnQuest will acquire Whalsay’s subsidiary, Whalsay Energy Limited (WEL), which holds the license as its only asset, on a cash, liability, and debt free basis.

On completion of the transaction, EnQuest will fund certain accrued costs and obligations of WEL, expected to amount to less than $2 million, the company said. No other upfront consideration is payable, according to the company, which noted that it will make deferred payments to Whalsay based on future revenues generated by WEL, which are capped at $40 million.

Completion of the deal is subject to the satisfaction of a number of conditions precedent, including the UK Oil and Gas Authority granting an extension of the existing license term, which is currently due to expire on June 30, and the receipt of other third party approvals.

Bentley is a heavy oil field in the UK North Sea located in 370 feet of water depth. It is one of the largest undeveloped oil fields in the UK continental shelf with an estimated stock-tank oil initially in place of around 900 million barrels, EnQuest outlined. The field was discovered in 1977 and has been appraised through the drilling and testing of six wells and two sidetracks.

In February this year, EnQuest revealed that it had signed an agreement with Anasuria Hibiscus UK Limited to farm-down an 85 percent working interest in, and transfer operatorship of, the Eagle discovery in the UK North Sea. During the same month, the company signed a deal with Suncor Energy UK Limited to purchase its entire 26.69 percent non-operated equity interest in the Golden Eagle area, comprising the producing Golden Eagle, Peregrine, and Solitaire fields.

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