Lawrence Graham has advised Discover Exploration Limited ("Discover") in relation to an equity investment of up to US$200m by Carlyle International Energy Partners ("CIEP"), an oil & gas exploration fund managed by global alternative asset manager, The Carlyle Group.

This substantial equity investment will fund Discover's near-term, high-impact drilling programme offshore New Zealand alongside operating partner Anadarko Petroleum Corporation and will provide working capital to develop new opportunities and grow the business.

The Lawrence Graham team advising Discover was lead by Geoff Gouriet (Partner, Head of Corporate) with assistance from Michael Murphy (Partner, Corporate Tax), Sam Gray (Senior Associate, Corporate), Rebecca Gordon (Senior Associate, Corporate) and Emily Troubridge (Trainee, Corporate).

Discover is a private unlisted oil and gas exploration company founded in late 2012 by the management team who were behind the successful creation of Cove Energy plc in 2009 whom Lawrence Graham advised on its sale to PTTEP Africa Investment Limited in August 2012 for £1.2bn.