QatarEnergy picks up stakes from Exxon in Canadian offshore blocks

QatarEnergy picks up stakes from Exxon in Canadian offshore blocks

DOHA: Qatar's state-owned energy company on Wednesday signed a deal to acquire from ExxonMobil stakes in two Canadian offshore explorations block, the latest in the Gulf state's efforts to expand its global oil and gas portfolio.

QatarEnergy, the world's largest producer of liquefied natural gas, has in recent years entered some of the most promising oil and gas basins through deals with top Western companies eager to secure stakes in Qatar's LNG industry.

As part of its quest to diversify internationally, QatarEnergy has in recent years picked up exploration blocks in basins including Guyana, Namibia, South Africa and Cyprus from companies including TotalEnergies, Shell and Exxon.

More recently it joined TotalEnergies and Italy's Eni in a three-way consortium to explore oil and gas in two maritime blocks off the coast of Lebanon. It is also in discussions to enter a large project in Iraq with TotalEnergies, Reuters reported.

The Qatari company first entered offshore exploration in Canada in 2021 with a 40 percent stake in ExxonMobil's license for EL 1165A off the coast of Newfoundland and Labrador.

The latest farm-in agreement announced on Wednesday gives QatarEnergy a 28 percent interest in license EL 1167, with ExxonMobil Canada holding 50 percent and Cenovus Energy 22 percent,