In June 2024, gas exploration and production company Energean (TASE: ENOG; LSE: ENOG), which holds the rights to the Karish and Tanin reserves in Israeli waters, announced the sale of its asset portfolio in Egypt, Italy and Croatia to private equity firm Carlyle International Energy Partners. Now, because of regulatory problems of the buyers, the deal is liable to be cancelled. Energean’s share price is down 7% in Tel Aviv in the wake of the announcement.
The assets in question are developed and active gas reservoirs. In the original announcement of the sale, they were valued at $820-940 million, representing a threefold profit on the company’s investment in 2020, when it paid $284 million. The profit on the deal was earmarked for the purchase of new assets overseas, unconnected to the Israeli market.
In the notice to the stock exchange, Energean CEO Mathios Rigas states, "Although the necessary regulatory approvals have not yet been obtained by Carlyle, we remain committed to closing the Transaction. These are high-quality, diversified assets with significant growth potential and, if the Transaction does not close, we will assess all strategic options, focusing, as always, on the best interests of our shareholders keeping in mind the need for diversification, scale, dividend accretion and growth."
The last date for completion of the deal is March 20. Energean says that it has not managed to extend the deadline.
The regulatory problem is that the entity through which Carlyle intended to buy the gas fields is new, with no financial history, and Carlyle has not managed to persuade the Italian regulator that it can back it financially, and so it has not obtained approval for the purchase.
Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on March 17, 2025.
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