SSE completes £200m North Sea gas deal

Utility giant Scottish & Southern Energy yesterday announced the completion of a deal to acquire North Sea natural gas assets from US exploration conglomerate Hess.

The Perth-based firm paid $324 million (200m) for roughly 300 billion cubic feet of gas and liquid resources. It estimated the acquisition would provide 8 per cent of its daily gas needs.

The deal was subject to changes and delays following the announcement of initial terms last April. Originally, SSE said it would pay $423m for 383 billion cubic feet of gas, but in June - when the deal was expected to complete - the firm revised this to about 300 billion cubic feet, about 6 per cent of its gas needs.

Alistair Phillips-Davies, energy supply director of SSE, said the deal marked "important first steps into the upstream gas sector" for the firm. He added: "While we hope to build our presence in the sector over time, we will do so in a careful, measured way and only where fair value can be secured." Shares in SSE closed down 15p at 1,162p.