Italian oil major Eni buys North Sea gas producer Neptune Energy in £4bn deal

One of the biggest producers of gas in the UK’s North Sea will be bought by Italian oil giant Eni after the two agreed a 2.6 billion dollar (£2.1 billion) deal.

The deal will see Eni take over Neptune Energy, with Norway’s Var Energi buying its sites in the Norwegian continental shelf for a further 2.3 billion dollars (£1.8 billion).

Var is majority owned by Eni.

Neptune’s German business will continue to be run as an independent company, owned by its current shareholders, it said on Friday.

In one of the biggest deals in Europe in years, Eni will get control over Neptune’s assets in Australia, Algeria, the Netherlands and Indonesia.

Neptune chair Sam Laidlaw said: “Since Neptune’s formation in 2018, we have invested in the business and transformed the organisation, resulting in material improvements in safety, operational performance and cost efficiency.

“I am incredibly proud of Neptune’s achievements over the past five years – and the hard work and dedication of so many people across our organisation, who, together with our shareholders, have contributed to the growth and success of the business.

“This transaction offers a new and exciting phase for Neptune, with significant growth opportunities supporting energy security and the energy transition, which will benefit from Eni’s and Var Energi’s larger scale and available resources.”

Eni’s chief executive Claudio Descalzi said: “This transaction delivers to Eni a high-quality and low carbon intensity portfolio with exceptional strategic and operational complementarity.

“Eni sees gas as a critical bridge energy source in the global energy transition and is focused on increasing the share of its natural gas production to 60% by 2030.”