Italy's Eni Completes Sale of 10% Stake in Côte d'Ivoire's Baleine Field

en.Wedoany.com Reported - On September 16, Italy's Eni announced the completion of the sale of a 10% interest in the Baleine oil and gas project in Côte d'Ivoire to Azerbaijan's State Oil Company (SOCAR). Following the completion of the transaction, the equity structure of the Baleine project has been adjusted to Eni 37.25%, Vitol 30%, SOCAR 10%, and Côte d'Ivoire's national oil company Petroci 22.75%.

The two parties initially signed a binding equity transfer agreement on January 22, 2026, when Eni held a 47.25% interest in the project. Following the completion of this closing, SOCAR has formally entered the shareholder structure of the Baleine project, and the relevant regulatory approvals and transaction closing procedures have been completed. Eni did not disclose the transaction amount for the sale of the 10% interest.

Baleine is currently the main offshore oil and gas development project in Côte d'Ivoire. It was discovered in 2021, with Phase 1 commencing production in August 2023 and Phase 2 starting production in December 2024. Currently, Phase 1 and Phase 2 combined produce more than 57,000 barrels of crude oil per day and more than 78 million cubic feet of natural gas per day. Phase 2 utilizes the Petrojarl Kong floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel and the Yamoussoukro floating storage and offloading (FSO) vessel. All processed natural gas is supplied to Côte d'Ivoire's domestic energy market through the pipeline built during Phase 1.

In May 2026, Eni, Petroci and Vitol approved the final investment decision for Phase 3 of Baleine. Phase 3 will implement full-field development of the oilfield, with the project's overall crude oil production capacity planned to increase from approximately 60,000 barrels per day to 150,000 barrels per day, and natural gas production capacity from approximately 80 million cubic feet per day to 200 million cubic feet per day. Eni previously disclosed that Phase 3 will be equipped with a new FPSO, with the Phase 3 FPSO designed with a crude oil processing capacity of approximately 90,000 barrels per day.

Phases 1 and 2 of the Baleine project have now entered the stable production stage, while Phase 3 has entered the development and implementation stage following the investment decision. Eni also operates offshore oil and gas discoveries including Calao and Calao South in Côte d'Ivoire, and continues to advance exploration in local deepwater blocks.