Kosmos Ghana Sale Recedes

Wednesday, July 15, 2009

As the race to buy US-based Kosmos Energy's 30% stake in the Jubilee deepwater oil field off Ghana heats up, doubts whether Kosmos will sell are growing. In a move that casts doubt on a sale, the US firm said Tuesday it has secured a $750 million debt facility that will fully fund its share of Jubilee's first phase of development. The debt will be secured by shares in Kosmos subsidiary Kosmos Energy Ghana.

Jubilee, one of the largest oil finds in West Africa in the past decade, is estimated to hold 1.2 billion boe. The entire field is valued at around $15 billion. Commercial production is likely to start in June 2010.

The list of potential bidders for Kosmos' stake include Royal Dutch Shell, Exxon Mobil, Chevron and Italy's Eni, plus Ghana's national oil company and China National Offshore Oil Corp. (IOD Jun.22,p8). India's Oil and Natural Gas Corp. (ONGC) has also entered the fray, India's Economic Times said Tuesday. ONGC is likely to team up with another foreign player for the offer, which could be valued at $3 billion-$4 billion, the newspaper reported.

Kosmos' partners in Jubilee are UK-listed Tullow Oil and US-based Anadarko Petroleum.