Continental Resources to sell US properties for $222m

Continental Resources has signed an agreement to sell its non-strategic properties in North Dakota and Montana, US, to an undisclosed firm for $222m.

As part of the deal, the company will sell 68,000 net acres of leasehold primarily located in western Williams County, North Dakota, and 12,000 net acres of leasehold in Roosevelt County, Montana.

In addition, net production of about 2,800 barrels of oil equivalent (boe) per day will be sold.

Continental Resources chairman and CEO Harold Hamm said: "This is our third sale of non-strategic assets this year, with total expected proceeds of more than $600m.

"The combination of Continental's high-quality drilling inventory, strong balance sheet and $560m investment in drilled but uncompleted wells (DUCs) provides the company with a robust platform for high-value future growth.”

This investment includes operated, as well as non-operated DUCs, about 80% of which are in North Dakota.

The company plans to use the sale proceeds to reduce debt.

In May this year, Continental sold about 132,000 net acres of leasehold in the Washakie Basin in Wyoming in a deal valued at $110m.

An agreement was recently signed for the sale of about 29,500 net acres of non-strategic leasehold in the eastern SCOOP play in Oklahoma to an undisclosed company for $281m.

At present, the company has approximately 215 gross operated DUCs in inventory, of which around 165 are in the Bakken.

The total is expected to increase to about 240 gross operated DUCs by this year end, with an estimated 190 in the Bakken.

Continental’s Bakken DUCs have an average estimated ultimate recovery of 850,000boe per well.