EnQuest Interested in Buying BP's North Sea Oil and Gas Interests

According to CNBC, EnQuest CEO Amjad Bseisu said the U.K. energy exploration and production company is interested in buying BP's oil and gas interests in the North Sea. BP said on July 31 that it had launched a process to sell its U.K. North Sea business, and Bseisu said there is still a "tremendous opportunity" in the U.K. oil and gas sector. He said EnQuest, which mainly operates in the U.K. Continental Shelf region, would be interested in BP's assets in the area and added that only a handful of companies would likely be buyers. Bseisu also said the U.K. now imports about half of its energy and urged the government to support development of domestic oil and gas resources. Separately, EnQuest reported adjusted pre-tax profit of $54.6 million in the first half of the year, revenue of $529.9 million and production up 9%.