By Will Connors
Of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL

LAGOS, Nigeria — Kosmos Energy said Monday it signed an exclusive deal with Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) to sell its stake in a significant oil discovery off the coast of Ghana, the first confirmation from either company of the deal, said to be worth $4 billion.

“I can confirm that Kosmos has entered into an exclusive binding agreement with a third party (an affiliate of Exxon Mobil) in relation to the sale of its Ghana assets,” Kosmos Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Greg Dunlevy said in an email to The Wall Street Journal.

The announcement comes a day after it emerged that China National Offshore Oil Corp. (CEO, 0883.HK), or Cnooc, is in advanced talks with Ghana National Petroleum Corp. to make a rival bid for Kosmos’ stake in the field, known as Jubilee.

Dunlevy did not disclose the deals’ price tag, but sources told the Journal over the weekend that the deal was worth an estimated $4 billion.

(This story and related background material will be available on The Wall Street Journal Web site, WSJ.com.)

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