GIC injects $624.6m into new North Sea oil exploration project

Investments in the North Sea reached a record high in 2013.

Sovereign fund GIC, together with affiliates of Blue Water Energy and Blackstone Energy Partners, today revealed that it is injecting US$500m ($624.6m) into Siccar Point Energy Limited, a new exploration, development and production company focused on the North Sea.

It will participate across the full value chain from exploration through to production. The company will initially focus on UK Continental Shelf (UKCS) opportunities where a change of control will facilitate follow-on investment activity that will further enhance asset potential. 

According to Jonathan Roger, CEO of Siccar Point Energy, "This is a great time to build a business in the North Sea for a well capitalized and experienced team with a focused strategy. It is a period during which some of the largest upstream companies are cutting back on capital expenditures and consolidating their global asset portfolios. We believe that selective capital deployment and efficient operations can deliver attractive returns in this environment. I am delighted to have such strong and experienced investors supporting our business."

Here’s more from Siccar Point Energy:
The team has expertise in managing large, complex assets in the UKCS whilst adopting innovative technologies and strategies to unlock the maximum commercial hydrocarbon potential. The Company will also have a strong North Sea exploration focus that targets the best returns taking account of both technical and fiscal factors.

Siccar Point Energy is led by CEO Jonathan Roger, the former managing director of Centrica Energy Upstream, where he led the business from early 2010 following the acquisition of Venture Production Plc. (Venture Production). 

Roger has been working in close collaboration with Blue Water Energy since he left Centrica last year to formulate Siccar Point’s business plan, and was joined by Blackstone in early 2014. GIC is investing alongside Blue Water Energy.

At Siccar Point, Roger will be joined by a highly experienced team, including Iain Bartholomew as subsurface director, Doug Fleming as finance director and David Sheach as general counsel. The Siccar Point senior management team has worked together over the last decade through tenures at Venture Production and Centrica Energy Upstream.