January 2023

We are pleased to announce that on 1st February 2023 Jim Peterkin will join Kirk Lovegrove & Company as a Principal to work alongside Niels Kirk, Michael Bridden and Martin Copeland. Until late last year, Jim was the Head of EMEA Energy Investment Banking for Credit Suisse. Before joining Credit Suisse Jim was Co-Head of EMEA Energy for Barclays Investment Bank and before that was a Managing Director at Citigroup Investment Bank.  Jim brings with him a wealth of experience over 30 years in the energy sector and a range of exceptional industry contacts. His history is steeped in oil & gas Investment Banking, but while at Credit Suisse he focused more on advising in the alternative energies space. In KLC, Jim will play a major role in developing further our relationships with the larger companies in oil & gas. He will also lead the development of our advisory business in alternative energies, working with our colleague Paul Dufays.

December 2022

Kirk Lovegrove & Company has advised Tailwind Energy on its £644 million combination with Serica Energy. The estimated proforma production in 2023 of the merged Serica-Tailwind group will be 40-45,000 boe/d from 11 producing fields, putting the group into the top 10 UK oil & gas producers. The combined portfolio will have 2P reserves of 106 million boe, and production from two main offshore hubs – Bruce and Triton – balanced between oil and gas. As a result of the transaction, the commodity trading group Mercuria will become a 25.2% shareholder and will nominate two directors to the Serica board on completion.

December 2022

Kirk Lovegrove & Company has advised Savannah Energy PLC on the acquisition of PETRONAS’s entire oil and gas business in South Sudan for a total cash consideration of up to US$1.25 billion. Completion of the Transaction would result in Savannah acquiring PETRONAS’s interests in three Joint Operating Companies which operate Blocks 3/7 (40% Savannah net working interest (“WI”)), Blocks 1/2/4 (30% WI) and Block 5A (67.9% WI), in South Sudan, comprising 64 producing fields with 2021 average gross oil production of 153,000 barrels per day. Subject to completion, Savannah’s partners in these assets will include CNPC, Sinopec, ONGC and Nilepet, the national oil company of South Sudan. Completion of the transaction is conditional upon, inter alia, government approval, the approval of Savannah’s shareholders and re-admission of Savannah’s shares to trading on AIM. 

November 2022

Kirk Lovegrove has acted as strategic adviser to Jadestone Energy plc on its acquisition from BP of its 16.67% interest in the North West Shelf Oil Project offshore Australia. The project comprises the Cossack, Waneaea, Lambert and Hermes oil fields (the “CWLH fields”), and Jadestone has acquired an interest in these fields, as well as a corresponding interest in the Okha FPSO and related subsea infrastructure.   Gross oil production from the CWLH fields in 2022 will be approximately 13,000 barrels/day.

October 2022

Kirk Lovegrove acted as financial adviser to Harbour Energy plc and Rockhopper Exploration plc on the sale of their interests in the Sea Lion oil & gas development offshore the Falkland Islands to Navitas Petroleum.  As part of this transaction, Harbour Energy has exited the North Falkland Basin completely, and Navitas has gained a 65% interest in, and becomes operator of, licences PL003, PL004, PL005, PL0032 and PL0033.  Rockhopper retains a 35% interest in all of these licences. The Sea Lion field was discovered by Rockhopper in 2010 and sits in ca. 450m water depth in the South Atlantic. Recoverable gross oil resource from the Sea Lion development has been estimated at 250 mmbbl, with potential gross plateau oil production of 80,000 barrels per day. Navitas and Rockhopper will now jointly pursue the development of the Sea Lion field.