Enterprise Oil
| File:Enterpriseoillogo.PNG | |
| Former type | Public |
|---|---|
| Industry | Oil and gas |
| Fate | Acquired |
| Successor(s) | Royal Dutch Shell |
| Founded | 1983 |
| Defunct | 2002 |
| Headquarters | Aberdeen, UK |
| Key people | Sir Graham Hearne, (Chairman) |
Enterprise Oil was a major British independent exploration and production company based in Europe, with core areas of activity in Britain and Ireland, mainland Europe, Brazil and the Gulf of Mexico. The Company was once a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index but was acquired by Royal Dutch Shell.
History
Enterprise Oil was formed in 1983 to expoit the North Sea oil production assets of the then state-owned British Gas plc: it was privatised and its shares first listed on the London Stock Exchange in February 1984.[1] In 1994 the Company was involved in a high-profile but unsuccessful bid to acquire Lasmo.[2]
The Corrib gas field was discovered off the coast of Ireland by Enterprise Oil in 1996, and has proved especially troublesome for Shell. (See Corrib gas controversy)[3] [4]In the last few years of the Company's existence it was also investing significant sums in its Brazilian oil interests.[5]
The Company was purchased by Royal Dutch Shell for £3.5bn in 2002.[6]
Operations
The Company had interests in some 41 fields, mainly in the North Sea but had also made at least one major discovery in the Gulf of Mexico.[7] It was initially based in London but whilst keeping its head in London, it relocated UK operations to their office in Aberdeen in 1998.[8]
References
