Exxon moves in Mauritania, eyes Egypt

ExxonMobil has acquired three blocks offshore Mauritania, the super-major announced on Monday.

The price tag of the production-sharing contracts for the C14, C17 and C22 blocks was not disclosed.

“These blocks further enhance ExxonMobil’s leading global deepwater acreage position,” said Steve Greenlee, the president of ExxonMobil Exploration Company, in a statement. “We thank the government of Mauritania for the opportunity to evaluate the potential of this acreage using our expertise and advanced technology.”

Also on Monday, Reuters reported that the super-major was considering a move to enter Egypt’s offshore.

“We have been discussing with them, visiting them. They’ve visited us… We are exploring all opportunities for having more and further upstreamers in Egypt,” the country’s minister of petroleum, Tarek El Molla, told the agency, referring to recent meetings with ExxonMobil officials.

The news came days after ExxonMobil announced that it would merge its refining and marketing arms.