Harbour Energy plc has entered the Gulf of Mexico (America) with the $3.2 billion (£2.4bn) purchase of LLOG Exploration Company LLC.
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The proposed purchase from LLOG Holdings LLC comprises $2.7bn (£2bn) cash and $500 million (£371m) in 174,855,744 Harbour’s voting ordinary shares each at 205 pence.
An underwritten $1bn (£740,000) bridge facility, a $1bn term loan and Harbour’s existing sources will fund the $2.7bn.
On completion, expected in late Q1 2026, LLOG Holdings LLC will own 11% Harbour’s listed voting ordinary shares.
Chief executive officer Linda Z Cook said that the acquisition fulfilled Harbour’s “long-standing ambition” to have a presence in the Gulf.
“With LLOG, we found the right combination of high-quality assets and a talented team, providing a strong strategic and cultural fit with our company.
“The transaction positions us as a leading player in a region with well-established infrastructure, a supportive fiscal and regulatory environment and opportunities for additional growth.
“The oil-weighted, deepwater LLOG portfolio enhances our production profile, provides significant operational control, extends reserve life and improves our margins.
“In addition, the LLOG organisation brings decades-long experience in the Gulf of America with a successful track record, creating a solid foundation for Harbour in the area.”
The acquisition of more than 80 LLOG-operated leases, including Who Dat in Mississippi Canyon, and Buckskin and Leon-Castile in Keathley Canyon.
The transaction gives Harbour an additional production of 34 thousand barrels of oil per day, which is expected to approximately double by 2028 through having a “leading position in the prolific Lower Tertiary Wilcox play”, along with 2P reserves’ life of 22 years.
The company also expects the grant of 11 deepwater leases from a recent Gulf of America federal lease sale.
LLOG CEO Philip LeJeune added that joining Harbour would set the stage to achieve “extraordinary results”.
Harbour’s other assets are located in Norway, the UK, Argentina and Mexico.