Hess Corp. has agreed to terms for the sale of its interest in the Beryl area fields and the Scottish Area Gas Evacuation System (SAGE) to Royal Dutch Shell for $525 million, according to a news release.

The Beryl fields, located northeast of Aberdeen in the UK North Sea and operated by Apache, produced approximately 14,000 boe/d net to Hess through the first nine months of 2012. Subject to regulatory approval, the sale is expected to close in 1Q 2013, the release said.

“This sale is part of our strategic portfolio reshaping,” Greg Hill, president of the company’s worldwide E&P division, said in the release. “Including this transaction, we have announced asset sales year-to-date of approximately $2.4 billion.”

The Beryl area includes 12 fields located on the UK Continental Shelf, according to Shell. With the acquisition, Shell’s interest in the different fields will increase by a range of between 9% to 65% depending on the field. The acquisition is expected to lift Shell’s production in the Beryl area fields from currently 9,000 boe/d to 24,000 boe/d. Shell intends to invest in these assets to substantially extend the production life, for potentially a further 20 years.