Zenith terminates deal to acquire Coro Energy Italian assets

Zenith Energy Ltd. and Coro Energy PLC have terminated the sale and purchase agreement (SPA) signed in December 2019 that would have seen Zenith acquire Coro’s entire Italian natural gas production and exploration portfolio.

Under the SPA, the deal’s completion was conditional on receipt of Italian regulatory approvals prior to the long stop date of July 31, which will not be achieved. The SPA allowed for a possible extension of the long stop date to Oct. 31, but Zenith elected not to formulate the request.

“In view of the many exciting developments that have taken place since the SPA was first announced to the market in December 2019, specifically our acquisitions in the Republic of the Congo and Tunisia, as well as the unprecedented changes brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic, we have decided to reconsider the proposed expansion of our natural gas production and exploration portfolio in Italy,” said  Andrea Cattaneo, chief executive officer of Zenith, in a July 31 statement.

In early July, Zenith entered into a joint venture agreement with an oil and gas company local to the Republic of the Congo for the potential acquisition of an onshore oil production license, last producing at a rate of 300 b/d of oil from the Mengo formation as recently as 2019. Production is currently suspended pending the assignation of a new license.

In April, a Zenith subsidiary signed a conditional SPA with KUFPEC (Tunisia) Ltd. to acquire a working interest in the North Kairouan permit and the Sidi El Kilani concession, which contains Sidi El Kilani oilfield in Tunisia.

Coro's Italian portfolio consists of 100% working interests in four producing natural gas concessions: Sillaro, Rapagnano, Casa Tiberi, and Bezzecca, as well as one production concession which is development ready, S. Alberto. Two exploration concessions, Laura and Santa Maria Goretti complete the portfolio.