Energy North Sea sold to Japanese

JAPANESE trading house Marubeni has bought independent UK oil explorer Energy North Sea in a deal worth almost £180m.

Sources claim Marubeni sealed the acquisition last week after completing the sale of its stake in the socalled Trees oil redevelopment to Venture Production.

It hands Marubeni a 41% stake in the Montrose, Arbroath and Arkwright (MonArb) fields formerly held by Shell. The fields produce nearly 25,000 barrels of oil a day.

Energy North Sea, a privatelyowned firm backed by Bank of Scotland, bought into the project only 14 months ago for £100m. It has minority stakes in two other projects.

The acquisition, announced in Japan today, is the latest predatory move by a foreign firm in the North Sea and could signal fresh consolidation.

It is almost certain to boost interest in Paladin Resources, which operates MonArb and was rumoured to be a bid target for Canada's Nexen.

Japanese firms are desperate for large producing fields given the country's growing demand for energy and lack of natural resources.

Marubeni and Energy North Sea declined to comment.