LONDON â€" Kohlberg Kravis Roberts agreed on Monday to buy a majority stake in the British oil and natural gas services company Acteon Group from the First Reserve Corporation, an energy-focused private equity firm.
The deal, whose financial details were not disclosed, values the company at $1.3 billion to $1.4 billion, according to a person with direct knowledge of the matter.
Under the terms of the deal, K.K.R. will be joined by the private equity firm White Deer Energy, which is based in Houston. Acteon provides deepwater technical services including surveying and moving drilling rigs.
The Acteon investment was spurred by a major expansion in deepwater exploration by the energy industry, which has scoured the globe in search of natural resources.
“This is a growth investment,†a K.K.R. partner, Dominic P. Murphy, said in a statement.
K.K.R. has taken aim at the rapidly expanding oil and natural gas sector.
Last year, a consortium led by K.K.R. bought the Samson Investment Company, one of the largest privately held energy companies in the United States, for about $7.2 billion.
The deal for Acteon is expected to close by the end of the year.
HSBC advised K.K.R., while JPMorgan Chase and Simmons & Company advised First Reserve.
