Genel Energy has announced that it has completely acquired the remaining 49 per cent participating interest in the Miran exploration block in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq
The firm now holds 100 per cent of the participating interest in the block and has become the sole operator, following its deal with Heritage Oil.
Heritage Oil confirmed the deal, which was carried out in order to repay a US$294mn loan made by Genel to Heritage in August 2012.
Tony Buckingham, CEO of Heritage, said, "We are delighted to have received final approval for the disposal which means we have not only monetised the asset at an attractive valuation but have also used the proceeds to fund a significant part of our entry into a new region through the recent acquisition of a major interest in OML 30, Nigeria. This brings the total disposal proceeds generated by Heritage from asset sales to over US$2bn."
Genel describes the Miran block as a "world-class gas field".
It contains two large contiguous structures, Miran West and Miran East, where results from wells drilled to date have confirmed the existence of two hydrocarbon systems with oil in the shallower Upper Cretaceous section and gas (and condensate) within the deeper Lower Cretaceous and Jurassic formations.
