Unocal Sells Interest in Brazilian Production Venture

Unocal said its Unocal Global Ventures II, Ltd., affiliate sold its 50-percent equity interest in a jointly held project company that owns UnoPaso Exploracao e Producao de Petroleo e Gas Ltda., a Brazilian exploration and production venture, for $61 million plus approximately $7 million in working capital.

The purchaser is EL Paso Production International Cayman Company, a subsidiary of El Paso Corporation, which now owns 100 percent of UnoPaso.

Unocal may also receive up to $19 million in potential additional payments that are contingent on attainment of certain natural gas prices and/or volume thresholds.

The underlying assets sold represent net production of approximately 4,500 barrels-of-oil-equivalent per day to Unocal.