Equinor explores sale of offshore Angola assets as Brazil and U.S. output grows

(Bloomberg) – Equinor ASA, Norway’s biggest oil and gas producer, is looking to sell a number of Angolan fields, according to people familiar with the matter. 

Equinor is working with a financial adviser to help identify potential buyers, the people said, asking not to be named because the information isn’t public. It intends to retain a small stake in one of the fields, they said. Deliberations are ongoing and no final decision on a sale has been made, they said.

The Norwegian company has in recent years sought to streamline its international portfolio, agreeing to exit Azerbaijan and Nigeria in 2024 and most recently divesting its onshore fields in Argentina. 

Equinor spokesperson Ola Morten Aanestad said the company does not comment on rumors or speculation. “Angola is a core country for Equinor and we see a long term future there,” he said.

Speaking at an event in Oslo earlier this week, Vice President for International Exploration and Production Philippe Mathieu said Equinor is targeting fields in Brazil, the Gulf of Mexico, the U.S. and the UK to boost production from its international portfolio to 900,000 bpd by 2030, up from about 700,000 bpd in 2025.

Equinor is involved in three offshore producing blocks on the Angolan continental shelf, with equity production in 2024 totaling about 110,000 boed, according to its website.

Angola is working to stem a long-term decline in oil output caused by a lack of investment. The country has set a target of maintaining output above 1 MMbpd, and in 2023 quit OPEC because the group was insisting on cutting its production limit.