Repsol explores sale of minority stake in South Texas oil assets, sources say

By Shariq Khan

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Spanish oil major Repsol plans to sell a minority interest in its Eagle Ford shale assets in South Texas, in a deal that could value the assets at up to $2 billion, three sources familiar with the talks told Reuters.

The sources said Repsol has hired Scotiabank to assist with the process, and aims to bring in a partner or partners to hold so-called non-op positions, earning a cut from sale of hydrocarbons while paying a share of operating costs. The non-op partners are not responsible for oil and gas extraction or other day-to-day operations.

Repsol is open to selling as much as a 49% interest in the assets, which include over 800 producing wells spread across about 80,000 net acres with production of about 50,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day, the sources said.

The company plans to maintain a majority stake and operate the asset, one of the sources said.

The sources cautioned a transaction of any kind is not guaranteed, and spoke on condition of anonymity as the talks are confidential.

Repsol and Scotiabank declined to comment.

Oil and gas companies have enjoyed bumper earnings in the post-pandemic years, as demand for fossil fuels surged to new records. Yet some estimate that global oil consumption will peak as soon as this decade, as the world transitions toward greener sources of energy.

Major energy companies have been selling non-core oil and gas assets while bringing in non-op partners on the profitable positions, allowing them to cut costs and raise cash that can be used to bolster shareholder returns and invest in alternative energy sources like biofuels.

Repsol in February detailed plans to focus its upstream portfolio on areas of 'competitive advantage and higher value' to prepare the business for a public offering in the U.S. by 2027. It identified the Eagle Ford as one of the core growth areas.

Also in February, it laid out a plan to return 4.6 billion euros of cash to shareholders through dividends and buy back shares worth up to 5.4 billion euros through 2027.

Repsol expects to support that plan by raising around 1.5 billion euros this year through divestitures, stake sales and rotations.

Reuters reported last month that Repsol and its partner Santos are exploring the sale of a minority stake in oilfields they jointly own in Alaska.

(Reporting by Shariq Khan and David French in New York; Editing by David Gregorio)