2010-04-30-2010-04-30-2010-06-18

Purchased addtl. 24.5% WI in offshore Panyu Field Block 15/34 in China, gaining 12,000 BOE/d, 16 MMBOE proved.

As part of its repositioning to onshore North American plays, Devon Energy Corp., Oklahoma City, (NYSE: DVN) has completed the sale of its 24.5% participating interest in Block 15/34, offshore China, to China National Offshore Oil Corp., or CNOOC, for $515 million ($370 million after taxes).

Block 15/34, operated by CNOOC, contains the producing Panyu Field, which averaged approximately 12,000 barrels of oil per day in 2009. Gross production from the block is 49,000 barrels of oil per day. CNOOC now holds a 75.5% interest in Block 15/34.

Devon chairman and chief executive Larry Nichols says, "Since announcing our plans this past November to strategically reposition the company to focus on its world-class North American onshore assets, we have divested nearly $10 billion of Gulf of Mexico and international assets."

Nichols notes that Devon's after-tax proceeds will amount to an estimated $7.9 billion, which exceeds the high-end of company's initial expectations of $4.5 to $7.5 billion. Devon expects to complete the closings of all its divestitures by year-end 2010.

Analysts at Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co. Securities Inc. previously reported that the deal involved 16 million barrels of oil equivalent in proved reserves. TPH also noted that Devon has some 22,000 barrels equivalent of proved reserves remaining to divest.