Stuart Carter - Consultant

Stuart is a highly experienced oil & gas sector corporate and commercial lawyer with over 30 years’ UK and international experience. He has worked extensively in-house where he has held a number of senior legal management roles, in addition to over 10 years’ London City practice experience. He is recognised among his clients and other sector lawyers as being “very commercially-orientated”, practical and solutions focused with a wide breadth of knowledge and understanding of the energy supply chain.

In his advisory role Stuart also advises oil & gas companies on ESG; UK Anti-Bribery; FCPA; compliance and internal approval structures related matters and has developed policies that are now part of the fabric of a number of organisations.

Stuart currently sits on the main board of the Association of International Energy Negotiators where, as part of the leadership team, helps drive delivery of the organisation’s principal aims of developing model contracts to be used internationally across the sector; organising educational seminars, and developing relations and networking among its worldwide membership that is drawn from industry; NOCs; the service sector and academia.

Areas of Expertise

• Acquisition and disposal – private company and assets (farm-in/outs & swaps);

• Government concessions, production sharing and licencing arrangements;

• Areas of mutual interest and joint bidding agreements;

• Unitisation and joint operating agreements;

• NPI and royalty agreements;

• Seismic and reprocessing agreements;

• Decommissioning & security agreements;

• Engineering, procurement and construction agreements;

• Drilling, well engineering & management agreements;

• Transportation and processing arrangements and storage for ground fuels;

• Gas and condensate offtake agreements;

• Charter party;

• Short-term and long-term LNG sales;• On-shore storage and offtake arrangements for Propane, Butane and Jet fuel, including pipeline transportation.

EXPERIENCE BY REGION

Middle East

Iran

Sirri A field acquisition and development agreements – TOTAL

Yemen

East Shabwa and Jannah block JV agreements and farm out activity – TOTAL

Africa

Somalia (Somaliland)

Refurbishment project for the Berbera Terminal (Somalia) and product storage - SOMGAS
Storage and Offtake Agreement – SOMGAS
Storage and Offtake Agreement – RFS

Botswana

Farm out of Karoo Basin licence– Karoo Energy

Egypt

Joint Operating Agreement with Aminex in relation to the West Esh Mallah Concession - - NPC South Abu Zenima
ONS PSC discussions between BP, EGPC & Burlington Resources
Acquisition of an Egyptian petroleum company - NPC South Abu Zenima
Provision of legal services to Egypt and off shore Gaza strip – BG Group

Nigeria

OKLNG – Upstream gas feed stock agreements with pipeline transportation – BG Group
Various farm out deals – BG Group
Advising on purchase of modular refinery, Installation, transportation and port agreements Discussion on supply agreements – Trafalgar Oil & Gas
LPG Sales – BG Group
OML 71 &72 Share Sale and Set Off Agreement, First E&P, Vitol and Larny Investments - Vitol
OML 109 Development of Ejulebe Field – Canadian Petroleum

Tanzania

Farm out of interests

Namibia

Farm out of interest to BP Lüderitz Basin – Serica Energy• South Africa
New country entry - Impact Oil & Gas
Farm out of various interest to Exxon - Impact Oil & Gas

Angola

PSC and JOA discussions and other JV activity with Chevron and SONANGOL – TOTAL
Block 32 Gas supply agreement – TOTAL
Block 32 Gas Transportation Agreement – CLOV System– TOTAL
Block 32 CTIA – Block 17 & Block 32 CLOV System – TOTAL

Cote d’Ivoire

Corporate acquisition of Rialto by Vitol – Vitol
CI 202 PSC negotiations – Vitol
CI 202 – JOA negotiations Vioco - Vitol
Pipeline Transportation agreement – Vitol
Condensate sales agreement Vioco & Petroci Holding – Vioco
CI 508 – Farm out of interest – Vitol
CI 508 – Vendor Collaboration Agreement among Vitol CDI, Petroci International and Barrus Petroleum – Vitol CDI

Cameroon

Farm out – Sterling Energy and Anadarko NTEM (Blocks MLHP-1 And MLHP-2 – Sterling

Mauritania

FPSO Re-negotiations, Chinguetti and Banda Field – Tullow

Morocco

Reconnaissance Licence negotiations with ONHYM on Block Tadla 1 – EOG
Farm Outs on Foum Draa and Sidi Moussa to Genel Energy Limited- Serica Energy

Libya

Exploration and Production Sharing Agreement negotiations with NOC (Libya) for Mabruk concession & JOA, and broader JV activity on Mabruk with co-venturers - TOTAL
EPSA negotiations with NOC – Canadian Petroleum

Algeria

PSC re-negotiations on Ourhoud Field - Burlington Resources
Various farm outs of Burlington’s interests - Burlington Resources
Joint venture activity - Burlington Resources

Ghana

Sale of share interest Rialto Energy (Ghana) Ltd to Vitol – Vitol• Senegal
NDA – Tamna Permit and Sebikhotane- Thies Block between Fortesa International and Vitol – Vitol

Tunisia

Gas Sales – Miskar Field – BG Group
General concession and JV relationship activity

United Kingdom

Deep and extensive experience in all levels and facets of the upstream and midstream sectors, with some downstream (mostly onshore storage and distribution). Some key mentions:

Participated and managed the legal support for companies (in-house and external) on numerous licence rounds (starting with the 14th),
Provided the key legal support at all levels on numerous farmouts/farmins across all 3 sectors of the North Sea, including for Serica, PWR, Hansa Hydrocarbons, BG Group, Total
Provided the key legal support at all levels in various developments including for BG Group on Armada, Seymour (CNS), Hansa Hydrocarbons on Juliet (SNS), as well as development of Rivers Fields (Crossan & Dalton), Morecombe Bay as the senior legal adviser for the Operator, Burlington Resources. Advised on numerous others and been close to all major agreements from seismic and well to transportation to onshore receiving terminals such as Bacton and Theddlethorpe.
Provided the key legal support in numerous asset and corporate acquisition/disposals including BG Group sale of Brae Field & pipeline interest, Sumitomo’s sale of Summit Petroleum and IOG re-organisation and then sale of various SNS assets.
Extensive experience of drafting and negotiating both JOAs and UUOAs. This experience is international and covers all regions.
Extensive experience of UK decommissioning documentation. Worked on Hutton decommissioning, when retained by Exxon.
Experience of swap arrangements – Acted for Summit in its’s swap of interest in the Kinnoull Field for a greater share in Pierce.
Various onshore storage and transportation arrangements and development of storage facilities from sites at Killingholme (Phillips66) and Teesside (Flowgas)– Exolum
On shore facilities development and storage agreements with Flogas Britain Ltd and Teesside Gas & Liquids Processing - Exolum
Acted for HH LAPS (management team) on MBO of various assets

Europe

Corporate acquisition of Marathon’s 50% share interest in CLAM (Dutch incorporated JV holding substantial offshore assets) – Burlington Resources.
Managing the provision of legal services in the corporate reorganisation of BR’s subsidiaries in the Netherlands following the CLAM acquisition - Burlington Resources.
Corporate disposal of BG Italia to a downstream Italian utility company that held BG Group’s exploration and producing assets in the Po Valley, (Italy) – BG Group.
Acquisition of various Dutch assets including a legal interest and capacity in the ETS pipeline system - Canadian Petroleum.
Acquisition of 35% in Polish companies Liesa Energy Sp.zo.o and Gora Energy Sp.zo.o in order to acquire interest in the Gora Concession and the Nowa Sol Concession - Pura Vida Energy NL.
Sale of EKZ – Karpty – sale of partnership and concession holder in Poland, and the entering into of an NPI – San Leon.
Corporate acquisition of Rockhopper Civitas Limited – the holder of interest in an onshore gas field, receiving plant and a number of prospect licences – Northern Petroleum (now Cabot).
Advising on Danish North Sea Licence Applications – Hansa Hydrocarbons.
Cascina Alberto Farm out – Cabot.

South America & Caribbean

Argentina