The completion of the acquisition of Ugandan oil assets from Heritage Oil is a step in the right direction for the energy sector, Tullow Oil announced.
In December, Heritage agreed to sell its holdings in Uganda to Italian energy company Eni. Tullow had the right to pre-empt the deal, however, and
in February the Ugandan government said it backed Tullow's plans despite a lobbying campaign by Eni to stop the transaction.
Heritage announced July 6 the Ugandan government "provided conditional consent" for the sale.
Tullow said in a statement published Tuesday that it completed the deal through a contractual settlement with Heritage for $100 million.
Tullow said the acquisition creates conditions for French energy company Total and the China National Offshore Oil Corp. to join the work in the Lake
Albert basin in Uganda.
"This is a major step forward for Tullow and the Ugandan oil industry," Tullow Chief Executive Officer Aidan Heavey said in the statement.
The executive added that accelerated development in the region could yield as much as 200,000 barrels of oil per day from the Lake Albert basin.
Tullow announced plans in January to raise more than $1.6 billion to fund its investments in Africa.