Shell, through its subsidiary Shell Offshore, is set to divest its 50% non-operated working stake in the Na Kika platform and associated fields in the Gulf of Mexico for $1.7bn (£1.28bn).
The deal also includes Shell’s 100% interest in the Coulomb tieback.
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The assets will be acquired by subsidiaries of Talos Energy and Ridgewood Energy. The consideration is dependent upon customary adjustments and certain contingent payments.
Under the terms of the deal, Shell will be eligible for upside-linked payments without a set cap through 2027. This will be in addition to overriding royalty interests on future production from new tiebacks to Na Kika, dependent on specific conditions being met.
The buyers will assume certain decommissioning obligations as part of the deal and are required to provide security in relation to these responsibilities.
Shell Trading US will retain offtake rights for production from both Na Kika and Coulomb via separate negotiated agreements with Talos and Ridgewood.
In 2025, Shell’s share of entitlement production from the assets was reported at 37,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day.
Shell’s modelling indicates that neither Na Kika nor Coulomb will be significant contributors to the company’s production portfolio by 2030.
Shell upstream president Peter Costello said: “The Gulf of America is one of our highest-value basins, and we are actively shaping our portfolio to ensure our Upstream business continues to be resilient and increasingly competitive.
“We remain focused on sustaining our material liquids production into the next decade.”
At the end of 2025, Shell’s proved reserves were 4.3 million barrels of oil equivalent (mboe) for Na Kika and 7.2mboe for Coulomb.
If the transaction proceeds, bp, which holds the remaining 50% working interest and operates Na Kika, has a preferential right to purchase Shell’s stake within 30 days of formal notification. This will be at the agreed price set under the purchase and sale agreement.
The Na Kika semi-submersible platform began production in 2003 and is Shell’s only non-operated platform in the Gulf of Mexico. Production from Coulomb commenced in 2005.
The transaction has an effective date of 1 July 2025 and is anticipated to close by the end of 2026, pending regulatory approvals.
Meanwhile, Shell’s latest LNG Outlook projects annual global demand for liquefied natural gas (LNG) to reach nearly 700 million tonnes (mt) by 2050, an increase of roughly 65% from 2025 levels.
In 2025, LNG trade totalled 422mt, with expectations for significant growth in 2026.
However, disruptions to shipping in the Strait of Hormuz since the onset of regional conflict have removed around one fifth of the world’s monthly LNG supply from the market. This has led to higher spot prices, while affecting several Asian nations.
The expansion of liquefaction capacity in North America, improvements at existing plants and a slowdown in Asian LNG imports have collectively cushioned the impact of lower Middle East supply.
LNG trade levels in 2026 are expected to align with 2025 volumes if shipping lanes reopen later this year, with growth projected to resume in 2027, said Shell.
