REUTERS
DEA Norge, a Norwegian-based subsidiary of DEA Deutsche Erdoel AG with Russian tycoon Mikhail Fridman in its supervisory board, was awarded five new licenses by the Norwegian Ministry of Petroleum and Energy, through its subsidiary DEA E&P Norge, in the 2015 Awards in Predefined Areas (APA 2015), according to a DEA press release.
Four of the licenses are located in the Norwegian Sea and one in the North Sea. DEA already has a strong presence in both areas, the press release said.
"These awards support DEA's long-term commitment to further growth on the NCS and prove the authorities' continued confidence in DEA's ambitions and competencies," says Hugo Sandal, Managing Director of DEA Norge. "All the awarded licenses are located in DEA's core areas on the NCS, and contribute to the further development of a strong and balanced DEA portfolio in Norway," Hugo Sandal added.
The following five licenses were awarded to DEA E&P Norge: PL 839 Skarv Unit (28.1%), PL 838 (30%), PL 837 (20%), PL 832 (15%) in the Norwegian Sea, and PL 782 SB (20%) in the North Sea.
Awards in Predefined Areas is the annual licensing round for award of licenses in mature areas on the Norwegian Continental Shelf. The APA system was established in 2003. This year, the Norwegian Ministry of Petroleum and Energy is offering shares in 56 new production licenses to 36 companies.
Last December, DEA acquired E.ON's Norwegian E&P business and thereby doubled its production in Norway to 75,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boe/d). With the closing of the acquisition, E.ON E&P Norge became a subsidiary of DEA Norge and was renamed DEA E&P Norge.
After the awards, DEA holds interests in a total of 77 licenses in Norway, of which 16 are operated.
DEA Norge is a Norwegian-based subsidiary of DEA Deutsche Erdoel AG, which is an international operator in the field of exploration and production of crude oil and natural gas based in Hamburg.
DEA now belongs to the Luxembourg financial holding company LetterOne. LetterOne was founded in 2013. The fund deploys its financial resources as well as its management and investment expertise to make value-driven investments in the energy and telecommunications sector through its subsidiaries L1 Energy und LetterOne Telecom. LetterOne says it plans to turn DEA into a platform for international growth.
The DEA Supervisory Board includes, among others, Russian tycoon Mikhail Fridman, who is Chairman of the Board of Directors of LetterOne, and German Khan, one of the original founders of LetterOne.