• Eni agreed to sell a 10% stake in the Baleine project to Azerbaijan’s state oil company SOCAR, subject to regulatory approval.
• The deal leaves Eni as operator with 37.25%, alongside Vitol and Petroci, and reflects portfolio optimization and risk sharing.
• Baleine remains a strategic asset for Côte d’Ivoire, producing over 62,000 barrels per day and targeting major expansion.

Eni signed a binding agreement on January 22 with SOCAR to sell a 10% interest in the Baleine project, the country’s largest offshore oil and gas development. The transaction remains subject to standard regulatory approvals. Following completion, the Italian group will retain its role as operator with a 37.25% stake, alongside Vitol with 30% and Côte d’Ivoire’s national oil company Petroci with 22.75%.

This transaction formed part of a rapid reshaping of the shareholder base of the country’s largest producing oil and gas field. Moreover, the deal aligned with Eni’s broader strategy to optimize its upstream portfolio.

Risk sharing and portfolio optimization

SOCAR’s entry followed Vitol’s recent investment in the project. Authorities finalized the 30% sale to the Swiss commodities trader at the end of September 2025 after securing the required approvals. That transaction reduced Eni’s exposure while allowing the group to retain operational control. Through this strategy, Eni aimed to share financial and operational risks on a producing asset while freeing capital for other upstream developments. Baleine therefore became a showcase for the active portfolio management strategy Eni pursued in Côte d’Ivoire.

The 10% sale to SOCAR reflected a model under which Eni sought to monetize discoveries earlier once projects entered development or production phases. This approach relied on targeted asset disposals without relinquishing operational control. In Côte d’Ivoire, this strategy enabled the group to finance the expansion of its offshore portfolio, which now includes ten blocks following recent offshore license acquisitions.

Beyond Baleine, the agreement also illustrated closer ties between Eni and SOCAR. In 2024, both companies signed three memoranda of understanding covering hydrocarbon exploration and production, energy security, greenhouse gas emissions reduction, and the biofuels value chain. SOCAR’s entry into Eni’s flagship Ivorian project translated this cooperation into a tangible partnership around a strategic and symbolic asset.

Baleine, a cornerstone asset in Côte d’Ivoire’s energy strategy

Eni entered Côte d’Ivoire in 2015 and positioned Baleine as its first major development in the country. The company discovered the field in 2021, marking a turning point for the Ivorian hydrocarbons industry after two decades without a major commercial discovery. Eni brought the field into production in 2023 under an accelerated timeline and developed it as Africa’s first net-zero emissions oil and gas project. Phases 1 and 2 currently deliver more than 62,000 barrels of oil per day and over 75 million cubic feet of gas per day, with a significant share of the gas supplying the domestic market to support electricity generation.

The project now advanced toward Phase 3, which remains under study. This phase aims to raise production to 150,000 barrels of oil per day and 200 million cubic feet of gas per day. The partners expect a final investment decision by the end of 2025. Available data indicated that the field should remain economically viable until 2059, positioning it as a long-term pillar of national production.

At this stage, Baleine accounts for around 8% of Côte d’Ivoire’s daily oil and gas output and occupies a central role in the country’s energy policy.

For Eni, the transaction confirmed its upstream optimization strategy. For Côte d’Ivoire, the deal strengthened an asset that has become structurally important for its energy and economic trajectory.

This article was initially published in French by Olivier de Souza

Adapted in English by Ange J. A. de BERRY QUENUM