BP and Abu Dhabi’s state oil giant on Tuesday made an offer to acquire 50 per cent of Israeli offshore natural gas producer NewMed Energy for around $4 billion.
The offer would involve acquiring NewMed’s free floating shares and taking the company private and would mark Abu Dhabi National Oil Co (ADNOC) and BP’s entry into Israel’s growing energy sector.
ADNOC and BP said they intend to form a new joint venture as part of the deal that will be “focused on gas development in international areas of mutual interest including the East Mediterranean.”
NewMed is the largest stakeholder in the giant Leviathan offshore field, operated by Chevron, which produces 12 billion cubic metres (bcm) of gas that are supplied to Israel, Egypt and Jordan.
