Abu Dhabi National Energy Co (Taqa) has acquired stakes in three Dutch North Sea oil and gas blocks from Calgary-based Cirrus Energy, Taqa said in a statement.

Taqa has bought between 15 per cent and 30 per cent equity stakes in the three blocks, the company said.

The UAE-based company will fund well exploration costs in the field 'with amounts ranging from 15 million euros to 30 million euros', Taqa said.

Taqa is majority owned by the Abu Dhabi government and has amassed over $1 billion of North Sea oil and gas assets in purchases from Canada's Talisman and BP in November 2006 and January 2007 respectively. It bought more North Sea assets from Royal Dutch Shell and Exxon Mobil earlier this year, for an undisclosed sum.

The company plans to spend around $1.4 billion on boosting oil output from its North Sea fields in the next three years to 60,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day from around 40,000 boepd.

The UAE is the world's fifth-largest oil exporter and Taqa's expansion is part of the Gulf Arab state's drive to use record oil revenues to diversify. - Reuters