Serica Mulls US-Iran Impact on Rhum
UK independent producer Serica Energy has said May 9 it takes note of the previous evening's declaration by the US president Donald Trump relating to Iran.
Trump on May 8 pulled the US out of the Iran nuclear deal and threatened to impose the harshest ever US sanctions on the Islamic Republic. Serica said: "The company is evaluating the implications of these statements and how they relate to the Rhum field in which the Iranian Oil Company (UK) Limited is a 50% partner. We will update the market, as appropriate, in due course."
When BP partnered the Iranian firm in the UK North Sea Rhum field, as operator it shut down the field for four years from 2010 until 2014 because of the US-EU sanctions against Iran. Unlike the US, the EU now is not planning to re-impose sanctions.
Serica announced November 2017 that it would pay BP £300mn (then $397mn) to acquire the supermajor's interests in the Bruce, Keith and Rhum (BKR) gas fields. Under the terms of the deal, it would acquire a 36% interest in Bruce, 34.83% in Keith and 50% in Rhum. As Serica noted May 9, however, completion of that deal has not yet happened, but rather is "planned to take place late 3Q2018."