Equinor sells stakes in two Norway fields to Sval Energi

OSLO (Reuters) – Norwegian oil major Equinor said on Tuesday it had agreed to sell its 7.6% stake in Norway’s giant Ekofisk field as well as a 19% stake in the Martin Linge field to private equity-backed Sval Energi.

“The agreement includes a cash consideration of $1 billion and a contingent payment structure linked to realised oil and gas prices for both assets for 2022 and 2023,” Equinor said in a statement.

Sval, which is owned by private equity firm HitecVision, said the deal adds output of 30,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boed) to its portfolio, putting the company on track to reach overall production of 100,000 boed in 2023.

Equinor said it will no longer have any ownership interests in the greater Ekofisk area but will retain a 51% ownership share in Martin Linge and continue as the operator of the field.

Divesting from Ekofisk, where ConocoPhillips is the operator, allows Equinor to redirect capital to other core areas of it business, the company said.

Adding Sval as a partner in Martin Linge makes further scope for value creation, Equinor added.

(Reporting by Terje Solsvik, editing by Gwladys Fouche)