Eni SpA said March 11 it signed an agreement to sell a 25.5% stake in its operated A5-A block offshore Mozambique to Qatar Petroleum for an undisclosed amount

The block is in the Northern Zambezi Basin approximately 1,500 kilometers northeast of Maputo, Mozambique, and covers 5,133 square kilometers in water depths ranging from 300 to 1,800 meters.

"By entering into this new agreement, we aim at expanding our exploration portfolio to ensure diversification of geographies as well as geologies and basins," Qatar Petroleum's president and CEO, Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi, said in a separate release dated March 11. "Having a large and diversified exploration portfolio is a key long-term objective for Qatar Petroleum and essential for success."

Currently, Eni through its subsidiary Eni Mozambico SpA owns a 59.5% stake in the Block A5-A Consortium while Sasol Ltd. and Empresa Nacional de Hidrocarbonetos EP hold interests of 25.5% and 15% respectively.