(Ecofin Agency) - Saudi Arabia's Arabian Drilling Company (ADC) has shown interest in purchasing Dalma Energy’s Algerian, Saudi Arabia and Oman asset in a deal which could value the latter at more than $500 million.

According to sources, Goldman Sachs had been employed to organize the sale of the company, which is owned by a consortium of investors through Al Qahtani Investments.The sources added that talks on the purchase began about three or four months ago and the transaction is in the examination stage and a deal is expected to be finalized by the end of October.

Dalma Energy owns and operates 31 land rigs all through the Gulf, Asia and Africa; 2 in Algeria, 20 in Oman and 9 in Saudi Arabia. Its clients include BP, Saudi Aramco and DNO Oman.

Foreign oil companies have cut spending and investment in the past two years as a result of the slump in oil prices, the effect of which has been witnessed all through the energy sector, Trade Arabia reports.Gulf rig contractors and oilfield service companies have no choice than to accept often sharp reduction to their contracts with oil explorers, even though activities remained higher than in other parts of the world as producers, especially Saudi Arabia has maintain production levels to keep market share.

However, Oil producers are to meet in Algiers on September 27, 2016, in order to arrive at a decision to freeze output and bolster oil prices which have been declining since mid-2014.

Anita Fatunji