Norwegian oil company Statoil has sold off a $2.6bn (NOK15.4bn) stake in two of its key North Sea oil and gas fields, freeing up cash to invest in new, more profitable ventures.
The Norwegian state oil group sold Austria's OMV a 19 per cent stake in the Gullfaks field and a 24 per cent stake in the Gudrun field. Both are mature fields discovered in the 1970s, which are now long past their peak production.
"Through this transaction, Statoil captures value created through asset development and unlocks capital for investment in high return projects in core areas," Helge Lund, Statoil's president and chief executive, said in a statement. "We continue to deliver on our strategy to create value through active portfolio management and to further increase our financial flexibility."
The company also sold the Austrian company its minority stakes in two new projects West of the Shetland Islands -- a 30 per cent stake in the Rosebank development and 6 percent in the Schiehallion field.
The payment could rise to up to $3.15bn by the time the transaction closes at the end of the year.
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