Kuwait Energy has hired an advisor to discuss options that could include selling all or part of its Block 9 asset in southern Iraq and a spin-off of Egyptian assets, sources familiar with the matter said. The move is aimed at creating much-needed liquidity for the company’s shareholders and a cash buffer to repay its debt, the sources said. The talks come after Kuwait Energy ended discussions on a possible merger with London-listed SOCO International earlier this year, saying the parties had not reached “mutually acceptable transaction terms”. The Kuwaiti company, which is headquartered in Bahrain and has assets in Iraq, Oman, Egypt and Yemen, started the merger discussions after failing last year to complete an IPO of its shares on the London exchange, through which it had hoped to raise cUSD150mn. This led in December to a board shake-up, which included the resignation of the company’s CEO and co-founder, Sara Akbar, and the appointment of six new board directors. Kuwait Energy earlier this year sold an 8.57% stake in Block 9 to Dragon Oil, a subsidiary of Dubai’s ENOC, for USD100mn and has settled an ownership dispute with the Dubai entity by giving it an additional 6.43% stake in the block. The company’s operations in Iraq are focused on three assets, including Block 9, while in Egypt it has interests in four oil and gas fields.