Serica Boss Hails Purchase of North Sea Assets

THE CHAIRMAN of North Sea focused Serica Energy has paid tribute to oil major BP as well as the UK Government and Oil and Gas Authority (OGA) after announcing that its acquisition of interests in the Bruce, Keith and Rhum fields has finally completed.

The company agreed a year ago to buy BP’s stakes in the fields for a total consideration of £300 million, before announcing in August that it would acquire Total’s Bruce and Keith interests for $20m.

In November, the firm said it had agreed to buy further interests in Bruce and Keith from BHP Billiton and Marubeni.\

While the BP deal was scheduled to complete earlier this year it was pushed back to this month to allow more time to overcome regulatory hurdles. The Total acquisition was dependant on the BP deal closing.

Serica chairman Tony Craven Walker said the acquisitions are “transformational” for the business, adding that they make the firm “one of the leading mid-tier independent exploration and production companies operating in the UK North Sea”.

“Undertaking four simultaneous and interconnected transactions has not been easy and we are grateful for the support from BP, our field partners, the UK Government and the OGA to help us overcome the various challenges and bring this to a successful conclusion,” he said.

He added that the firm aims to be at the forefront of the North Sea’s recovery.

Source: www.heraldscotland.com