Energean has agreed to divest its oil and gas assets in Egypt, Italy and Croatia to an entity controlled by Carlyle International Energy Partners.
The company said the deal is worth up to $945m (743.71m), of which $820m is firm.
Carlyle International Energy Partners plans to set up a new company to pursue additional acquisitions in the Mediterranean region. The new entity will be spearheaded by former BP CEO Tony Hayward.
Energean will sell gas-weighted assets with an expected production equivalent to 47,000 barrels of oil per day, featuring significant operations in Italy, Egypt and Croatia.
Included in the portfolio are stakes in the Cassiopea gas field in Italy and Abu Qir gas production hub in Egypt.
These assets were originally acquired by Energean as part of the purchase of Edison's oil and gas portfolio in 2020.
Energean said the sale forms part its strategy to streamline its portfolio and concentrate on gas developments, particularly the Karish Field in Israel and the Anchois field in Morocco.
The transaction is expected to optimise Energean’s portfolio by divesting mature assets, reducing more than 60% of the group's decommissioning liabilities and enhancing free cash flow in the short to medium term.
Energean CEO Mathios Rigas said: “Our focus will now be to create enhanced value from our Israel assets, and evaluate new opportunities that fit Energean’s key business drivers: paying a reliable dividend, deleveraging, growth and our commitment to net zero.”
Post-sale, Energean aims to maintain and expand its presence in the Mediterranean and explore opportunities in the broader Europe, Middle East and Africa region.
Proceeds from the sale will be used by Energean to distribute a special dividend of $200m and fully repay a $450m corporate bond.
Carlyle International Energy partners co-head Bob Maguire said: “We look forward to supporting the transformation of these assets into a scalable E&P [exploration and production] platform in the Mediterranean, through the execution of near-term developments, unlocking organic growth opportunities, M&A [mergers and acquisitions] and accelerating the delivery of existing decarbonisation plans.”
