Shell to Acquire BP's Interest in Conifer Oil Project in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico

en.Wedoany.com Reported - On September 2, Shell Offshore, a subsidiary of Shell, reached an agreement with BP to acquire a 30% interest in the Conifer exploration prospect in the deepwater U.S. Gulf of Mexico. Conifer consists of five offshore lease blocks and is currently operated by BP Exploration and Production; upon completion of the transaction, BP will retain a 70% interest and continue as operator. The transaction value was not disclosed.

Conifer is located in the Keathley Canyon area of the deepwater Gulf of Mexico, approximately 250 miles southwest of New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S., and is a Paleogene exploration target situated near BP's Kaskida project, which is currently under development. Under the current exploration plan, the first exploration well at Conifer is expected to be drilled in 2027. At the time of this interest transaction, the project remains in the exploration phase and has not yet entered development and construction.

BP previously acquired the five lease blocks comprising Conifer in two batches. Four of the blocks were obtained following the U.S. federal Lease Sale 259 in August 2023, and the fifth block was acquired in the Big Beautiful Gulf 1 lease sale in February 2026. Shell will enter all five lease blocks through this transaction, rather than a single well location or already-producing oil and gas assets.

The agreement also involves an interest adjustment between BP and Shell in another exploration asset in Brazil. Shell Brasil will acquire a 50% interest in the Tupinambá exploration block in the Santos Basin from BP; upon completion of the transaction, BP will retain the other 50% and continue as operator. Tupinambá is located in the pre-salt region of Brazil's Santos Basin, approximately 400 kilometers from the coast at a water depth of about 2,300 meters. Its exploration well is planned to commence shortly, and the transaction remains subject to regulatory approval.

As a result, BP will maintain operatorship of both the Conifer and Tupinambá exploration assets while introducing Shell with 30% and 50% interests, respectively. The next key milestone for Conifer is the first exploration well planned for 2027, with subsequent resource discovery and development scale yet to be determined.