Nairobi, March 29 -- French oil company TotalEnergies dodged a bullet in its quest to find commercially viable oil deposits in Kenya after three blocks that it sold to QatarEnergy returned nil results for the black gold.

The firm has disclosed the sale of its interest in the Lamu Basin blocks to the Qatari firm in September 2021, barely six months before the wells were declared dry, saving it billions of shillings in exploration costs.

TotalEnergies did not reveal how much QatarEnergy paid for the acquisition of its 11.25 percent stake in the three blocks.

But the move to sell the blocks highlights the mixed fortunes for the French major in its quest to find oil in East Africa's biggest economy.

"TotalEnergies finalised the sale to Qa...