Spanish oil company Repsol has agreed to sell half of its Block 29 oil and gas development project in the Gulf of Mexico to Talos Energy.
Repsol will bring the U.S. company into its project by selling it a 50% stake in exchange for two payments totaling more than US $50 million.
The transaction is subject to approval by Mexico’s Energy Ministry and the National Antitrust Commission.
Headquartered in Houston, Texas, Talos is acquiring a working interest in Block 29, located in the Salinas-Sureste Basin approximately 88 kilometers offshore of the state of Tabasco. This 3,254 square-kilometer area in the southern Gulf of Mexico has seen more than a dozen deepwater discoveries.
Block 29 contains the Polok and Chinwol oil discoveries, which together are estimated to contain more than 200 million barrels of oil equivalent in gross recoverable resources, along with multiple additional exploration prospects.
The block features a floating production, storage- and offloading-based development concept anchored by existing oil discoveries described by Energy-pedia news as “well-positioned to serve as a hub for future developments and nearby discoveries.”
The two payments offered by Talos are a contingent payment of US $30 million at the time of the final investment decision (FID) and a cash stake of up to US $20 million in the next exploration well. Talos will also be asked for the reimbursement of “certain pre-closing costs.”
Upon closing, Talos will hold a 50% working interest and, together with Repsol, will be the sole participants in the block. The partners expect to reach a FID early next year.
Repsol acquired 100% of the rights to Block 29 in 2025, assuming full operational and strategic responsibility for the asset, after Petronas (Malaysia’s national oil and gas corporation) and Harbour (the largest London-listed independent oil and gas company) relinquished their stakes.
In a statement, Talos Chairman and CEO Paul Goodfellow expressed confidence in working alongside Repsol as progress is made on Block 29.
“This stake adds a high-quality, large-scale development opportunity and significant exploration potential in a proven deepwater basin, further boosting the third pillar of our strategy and strengthening our long-term growth portfolio,” he said.
Talos said the “discoveries and identified prospects target amplitude-supported Miocene reservoirs analogous to fields [the company] has successfully developed and produced in the Gulf of America [sic].” The investment reinforces Talos’ “strategic focus on opportunities where its deepwater subsurface expertise provides a competitive advantage.”
With reports from El Economista, Economía Digital, Energy-pedia news and Offshore Engineer Magazine
