DNO ASA has agreed to buy Origo Exploration Holding AS, a private exploration firm focused offshore Norway and the UK. Origo will be renamed DNO Norge AS.
In the deal, DNO will pick up stakes in 11 exploration and appraisal licenses in the North Sea, of which 7 are on the Norwegian Continental Shelf and 4 on the UK Continental Shelf. As consideration, DNO assumes Origo’s drilling commitments and license obligations effective Mar. 31, with certain working capital adjustments.
The deal, subject to regulatory approval, fast-tracks DNO’s reentry into Norway after a 6-year hiatus during which the firm has built a Middle East presence, anchored by the DNO-operated flagship Tawke field in the Kurdistan region of Iraq.
DNO will retain Origo’s management, staff, and headquarters in Stavanger. “We are now positioned to pursue further asset acquisitions and, importantly, to compete in future exploration bid rounds offshore Norway,” commented DNO Executive Chairman Bijan Mossavar-Rahmani.
Origo was launched in 2014 by founding members of private equity-funded exploration firms Revus Energy ASA and Agora Oil & Gas AS.
