Carlyle Invests in Mazarine, Grants $500mn for M&A

US investment company Carlyle Group has taken an undisclosed stake in Mazarine Energy, a Tunisia-focused oil-gas explorer. According to a company statement May 16, Mazarine will receive $500mn to fund bolt-on acquisitions, focusing on low risk, near-term, conventional exploration, development and production opportunities in Europe, Africa and the broader Mediterranean region.

Capital for this investment and for the equity line will come from Carlyle International Energy Partners (CIEP), a $2.5bn fund that invests in global oil and gas exploration and production in Europe, Africa, Latin America and Asia. This acquisition will be the fifth investment by the fund, according to the statement.

Carlyle's previous acquisitions include Sterling Resource's upstream assets in Romania, but that was in March last year – over a year ago. Despite low oil prices since the summer of 2014, and the number of distressed companies in the North Sea, there has not been the wave of activity expected. For example, ex-Centrica CEO Sam Laidlaw's Neptune fund, which CIEP is also backing, is yet to announce an upstream deal.

Mazarine, founded by Edward van Kersbergen in 2013, will focus expansion in the Mediterranean region. The company has licences to operate in central Tunisia, which drilled two wells and discovered hydrocarbons in both.

Murat Basboga