Italy’s Eni has signed a binding agreement to sell a 10% stake in the Baleine offshore oil and gas project in Côte d’Ivoire to SOCAR, the State Oil Company of the Republic of Azerbaijan. The deal reduces Eni’s operating stake to 37.25% while leaving it as project operator. Vitol retains a 30% interest and Côte d’Ivoire’s state oil company Petroci holds 22.75%. The transaction aligns with Eni’s so-called “dual exploration model,” under which the company accelerates the monetization of major discoveries by ...

Core Insights - Eni has sold a 30% stake in the Baleine oil and gas project to Vitol, resulting in ownership distribution of 47.25% for Eni, 30% for Vitol, and 22.75% for Petroci [1] - The Baleine project, discovered in 2021, has achieved production of over 62,000 barrels of oil and 75 million cubic feet of gas per day, with expectations to increase to 150,000 barrels of oil and 200 million cubic feet of gas per day with Phase 3 [2][3] Eni's Strategy - The sale aligns with Eni's strategy to optimize its upstream portfolio through the "dual exploration model," which involves divesting equity stakes to accelerate monetization of exploration discoveries [2][3] - Earlier in the year, Eni announced a $1.65 billion deal with Vitol for stakes in upstream assets in West Africa, subject to cash adjustments [3] Vitol's Position - Vitol aims to expand its upstream and downstream assets following significant profits during the volatile energy commodity prices in 2022-2023 [4] - The partnership between Eni and Vitol is further solidified with existing collaborations in the OCTP and Block 4 projects in Ghana [4][5]