Energy acquisition news : French oil and gas major Total has acquired Marathon Oil Libya, a subsidiary of Marathon Oil for $450 million to take a stake of 16.33% in the Waha concessions.

Currently, the Waha concessions in Libya are producing about 300,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boe/d). The production is likely to increase to more than 400,000 boe/d by the end of 2020 with the restart of existing installations and development drilling.

For the US-based energy firm Marathon Oil, the sale of Marathon Oil Libya results in a complete exit from Libya. The decision has been taken to simplify its portfolio and focus on the high margin, lucrative US resource plays.

Commenting on Marathon Oil Libya sale to Total, Lee Tillman – president and CEO of Marathon Oil, said: “Our relentless focus on portfolio management has driven seven country exits since 2013 and generated proceeds of over $4 billion just in the last 2 years.

“As a result, 95 percent of our 2018 development capital allocation and about 70 percent of the Company’s total production mix will be associated with the U.S. resource plays, naturally expanding our margins in 2018 and beyond.”

Total acquisition of Marathon Oil Libya will give the French oil and gas company access to reserves and resources, totaling more than 500 million barrels of oil equivalent, with immediate production of nearly 50,000 boe/d.

The acquisition will also give it access to a major exploration potential across the Waha Concessions, which is spread over 53,000 square kilometers in the Sirte Basin.

Total’s partners in the Waha Concessions are National Oil Corporation (NOC), which holds a stake of 59.18%, ConocoPhillips, which holds 16.33% and Hess, which holds a stake of 8.16%. The operator of the asset is the Waha Oil Company, an NOC owned entity.

Patrick Pouyanne – Chairman and CEO of Total, commenting on Total acquisition of Marathon Oil Libya, said: “This acquisition is in line with Total’s strategy to reinforce its portfolio with high quality and low-technical cost assets whilst bolstering our historic strength in the Middle East and North Africa region.

“It builds on the Group’s long-term presence in Libya, a country with very large oil and gas resources, and demonstrates our commitment to continue supporting the recovering oil and gas industry of the country.”

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