British conglomerate swoops up TotalEnergies’ West of Shetland gas assets bundle

France’s energy giant TotalEnergies has decided to put several gas fields and associated infrastructure up for sale to optimize its portfolio and direct its attention to its core business. The Prax Group, Britain’s multinational, independent global energy conglomerate, will expand its footprint on the UK Continental Shelf (UKCS) by bringing the French player’s West of Shetland gas fields and assets into its fold.

The Prax Group has inked an agreement with TotalEnergies to buy its entire interest in the Laggan, Tormore, Glenlivet, Edradour, and Glendronach fields, the onshore Shetland Gas Plant, and nearby exploration licenses. These assets are part of the French energy heavyweight’s West of Shetland gas project, covering the producing Greater Laggan Area (GLA) fields and the undeveloped Glendronach gas field, which was discovered in 2018.

The producing fields are located up to 125 km northwest of the Shetland Islands and situated in water depths of approximately 300 to 625 meters. The closing of the acquisition is subject to approval from the relevant authorities.

TotalEnergies’ share of production from these mature assets is about 7,500 barrels of oil equivalent per day, made up of around 90% gas. This sale also entails the transfer of relevant employees from the company to Prax in compliance with the applicable legislation.

Jean-Luc Guiziou, Senior Vice President Europe for Exploration & Production at TotalEnergies, commented: “This transaction is in line with TotalEnergies’ strategy to continuously adapt its portfolio by divesting mature non-core assets. TotalEnergies remains committed to the UK through both its upstream portfolio in the North Sea (Elgin-Franklin, Culzean and Alwyn fields) and its Integrated Power and Renewables portfolio.”

With over 60 years in the UK, TotalEnergies operates around 30% of the UK Continental Shelf’s gas production, with an average daily output share of 142,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boe/d) in 2023. The firm is deploying its integrated power strategy in Britain, which combines renewable power production and flexible power generation capacities.

In addition, the company’s renewable portfolio encompasses 1.1 GW of gross installed capacity from the Seagreen offshore wind farm and 4.5 GW under development. This was complemented in 2024 by the acquisition of gas-fired power plants (CCGT) with a total output of 1.3 GW. The French player is also present in the carbon capture and storage (CCS) business through its 10% interest in the Northern Endurance Partnership.

TotalEnergies is also busy with other projects around the world. Recently, the firm took steps to obtain an offshore exploration license off the coast of São Tomé and Príncipe, embarked on drilling activities in the North Sea, and made a final investment decision (FID) for a liquefied natural gas (LNG) project in Oman.