North Sea producer Ithaca Energy has agreed an $860million (£645million) deal to acquire a major portfolio of offshore Canadian oil assets as it launches its first international expansion.

The FTSE 100 energy company will acquire interests in the Terra Nova and White Rose fields off the east coast of Newfoundland and Labrador from Suncor Energy.

The deal includes a 48% operated stake in Terra Nova, a 40% interest in the existing White Rose development and 38.6% of the White Rose Growth Lands, including the West White Rose Extension.

Ithaca will pay $860million (£645million) upfront, with a further $250million (£188million) potentially payable depending on oil prices, taking the potential value of the transaction to $1.11billion (£833million).

The acquisition will add 103million barrels of oil equivalent of proven and probable reserves and is expected to deliver average production of around 30,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day between 2027 and 2031.

Production is forecast to peak at between 35,000 and 40,000 barrels per day in 2029, helping lift Ithaca’s overall medium-term production outlook to between 140,000 and 150,000 barrels per day.

The company said the acquisition would establish it as the fifth-largest operator in offshore Canada by production and provide a platform for further expansion in North America.

FSTE100

The UK's flagship share index, the FTSE 100, was up 20-points at 10,482 shortly after opening this morning.

Brent crude oil futures were down 0.96%, sitting at $101.27 a barrel this morning.

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