Carlyle is looking for buyers of Colombian oil producers

According to sources familiar with the matter, Carlyle's private equity group is looking for a buyer of its Colombian oil company SierraCol. The price would be around $1.5 billion.

SierraCol was established by Carlyle in 2020, after purchasing assets from Occidental Petroleum. With a production of 45,000 barrels equivalent per day, it is the largest independent producer of Colombia.

According to a SierraCol website presentation, its free cash flow for the year ended September was $172 millions and its net debt was $511 million.

Carlyle declined comment.

Over the last decade, it has acquired, grown, and sold several oil companies, including Neptune Energy, in the North Sea, and Assala Energy, in Gabon.

Private equity funds usually take five years to monetise their assets, after they have upgraded them, by increasing, for instance, the reserve base for fields and setting them for future growth.

A deal for it to buy assets in Italy, Egypt and Croatia from Energean to create a Mediterranean-focused oil and gas producer is in jeopardy as a crucial regulatory approval from Italy remains outstanding.

(source: Reuters)