Japanese conglomerate Marubeni has divested its 12.5% working interest in the Big Foot oil and gas development in the Gulf of Mexico to Modiin Energy and Eventide Partners.
The sale was carried out through a wholly owned subsidiary of Marubeni. The buying entity is ME BigFoot, in which Israel-based Modiin Energy has a 90% stake and Eventide Partners holds the remaining 10% ownership.
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Situated approximately 360km south of New Orleans, Louisiana, the Big Foot field operates at a water depth of around 1,600m.
The project includes a drilling rig capable of operating at full capacity for both development drilling and future maintenance work.
Production wells in the field use electric submersible pumps installed at a depth of 16,000ft.
The project’s peak crude oil production is around 75,000 barrels per day and peak natural gas production is 25 million cubic feet per day.
Chevron operates the field, which began producing oil in 2018 and has since maintained stable operations.
Marubeni has participated in the asset since its development phase, including involvement in project planning and offshore platform construction.
The divestment comes as Marubeni pursues its Mid-Term Management Strategy GC2027, which aims to accelerate investment recovery and prioritise funding for higher-growth areas.
By increasing its natural gas-based assets, Marubeni intends to strengthen its business foundation across the energy value chain.
The Japanese group described the Big Foot sale as part of this ongoing initiative, stating that it plans to continue asset replacement to build a more robust natural gas value chain.
The transaction marks Marubeni’s exit from the project, which is now operated in partnership by Chevron as the majority stakeholder with 60% and Equinor with 27.5%.
For Modiin Energy, the deal enables its foray into the Gulf of Mexico.
The Israeli company received advice on the transaction from several companies including Epstein Rosenblum Maoz for international legal matters, Porter Hedges for US legal and purchase agreement guidance, and Agmon with Tulchinsky on financing arrangements.
Fischer provided support on equity raising and capital markets, while Petrie Partners acted as financial adviser.
