Canadian independent Shamaran announced on 31 May that the buyout of US firm Marathon’s 15% stake in the 32,000 b/d Atrush field in Iraqi Kurdistan has finally concluded. The 15% was split evenly between Shamaran and the field’s operator, Emirati firm Taqa. The new partnership is Taqa 47.4%op, Shamaran 27.6%, KRG 25%. Marathon has long wanted to quit the region, but the process proved a lengthy slog. It seemed simple at first when Shamaran signed up to buy the full 15 15% in June 2018 (MEES, 15 June 2018) but they soon ran into rough terrain when Taqa blocked the deal in November (MEES, 23 November 2018).
It soon became clear that Taqa wanted a slice of the action, and a new agreement was reached in December (MEES, 4 January), and five months later the parties have finally crossed the finish line. (CONTINUED - 131 WORDS)