Norway’s HitecVision AS has sold approximately 157.3 million shares to Var Energi ASA, or 6.3 percent of the company’s outstanding shares, through Point Resources Holding AS at $2.69 (29 NOK) per share for a total of $423 million (NOK 4.56 billion).
Point Resources is an investment holding that consolidates the interests of various funds and co-investment vehicles managed or advised by HitecVision, according to a recent press release from the firm. The shares were sold through a secondary placement of existing ordinary shares. HitecVision said the offering “attracted strong interest” and was oversubscribed several times, adding that the offering increased from approximately 142.3 million shares to 157.3 million shares.
Following the completion of the offering, Point Resources owns approximately 359.46 million shares in Var Energi, representing approximately 14.4 percent of the outstanding shares and votes. Free float, or shares that can be traded publicly and are not restricted, increased as a result from 16.3% to about 22.6%, according to the press release.
Operational updates
Meanwhile, Var Energi said it is on track to deliver more than 50 percent of “high-value production growth” on the Norwegian Continental Shelf (NCS) by the end of 2025, supported by 12 projects in development , the company said in a recent news release. liberation
Of the 12 projects, 10 are progressing as planned, while eight projects are more than 50 percent complete, Var Energi said. The Breidablikk project on the NCS, in which the company has a 34.4 percent stake, is likely to start in the fourth quarter, before the first quarter of 2024, as originally planned, he said. The Breidablikk field development concept includes four subsea templates linked to the Grane platform by pipeline.
Var Energi said its Balder X project capital expenditure (CAPEX) estimate has increased by about $340 million “to reflect a tighter supplier market, mitigate schedule risk and improve construction productivity.” The launch of the project is still aimed at the third quarter of 2024.
According to the company’s website, the Balder X project will enable further development in the Balder and Ringhorne area and consists of two sub-projects: the Balder Future Project and Ringhorne Phase IV.
The Balder Future project consists of the refurbishment and relocation of Jotun’s floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) unit from the Jotun field to the Balder area to accommodate tie-ins of 14 new production wells and a new water injection well. with the future expansion capacity to accommodate links to the area. The project will extend the technical life of the Jotun FPSO beyond 2045. First oil production from the Balder Future project is expected in the third quarter of 2024. Var Energi said the Jotun FPSO upgrade “has successfully met key milestones with the re -The flotation and heavy lift facilities completed according to plan and the current focus is on the execution of the remaining construction and commissioning work”, with drilling and subsea activities moving forward according to the planned schedule.
Ringhorne Phase IV is a continuation of drilling activities on the Ringhorne platform, following the Ringhorne Phase III drilling campaign and the drilling of five production wells on the platform, Var Energi said.
For the Johan Castberg project, operated by Equinor Energy AS, Var Energi said the CAPEX estimate has increased by approximately $390 million net before tax for the company. Earlier this month, Equinor Energy AS said that estimated investment costs for its flagship Johan Castberg project have risen by almost $1.2 billion (NOK 13 billion) from last year to $7.38 billion ( NOK 80 billion).
“Balder X and Johan Castberg are two major development projects that will materially contribute to our industry-leading production growth and long-term value creation despite the announced capex increase,” said Var Energi CEO Nick Walker. “We aim to extend production from the Balder area beyond 2045 with the upgraded Jotun FPSO hosting potential new tie-ins, such as the King and Prince fields discovered in 2021, and future discoveries and tie-ins” .
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