Blue Water Energy, Blackstone and GIC invest $500 million in new oil & gas firm

Siccar Point Energy Limited, a new exploration, development and production company focused on the North Sea, last week announced that affiliates of Blue Water Energy and Blackstone Energy Partners have agreed to lead an initial investment of up to $500 million in the company, including funding provided by GIC.

Siccar Point Energy 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. 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 Chief Executive Officer 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.

Mr. Roger was formerly the Chief Operating Officer at Venture Production, which at the time of the acquisition was producing over 50,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd). During his tenure at Centrica, Mr. Roger managed an international portfolio of over 180,000 boepd of production, including the 6th-largest UK production business, a Netherlands business established during his Venture tenure, and he also oversaw Centrica’s growth as the fastest growing independent in Norway during the last decade.

Mr. 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, Mr. 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.

Jonathan Roger, CEO of Siccar Point Energy, commented:

"This is a great time to build a business in the North Sea for a well capitalised 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."

Graeme Sword, Partner of Blue Water Energy, said:

"E&P is a key part of our fund strategy. We have a strong belief that there are continuing opportunities in the North Sea for well managed companies with a clear strategy and access to capital. We have worked with Jonathan to build the plan and are very pleased to be joined by Blackstone as our partner in Siccar Point."

Mustafa Siddiqui, Managing Director of Blackstone Energy Partners, added:

“Blackstone has invested approximately $7 billion of equity in the energy sector over the last decade, the majority of which has been to fund the formation of new companies and capital expenditure needs of existing high-growth companies led by exceptional, entrepreneurial management teams. We are impressed with the capabilities of Jonathan and his team and look forward to partnering with them and Blue Water Energy to build Siccar Point into a leading independent oil & gas company.”