TOTAL is selling a North Sea oil and gas portfolio to investors from the Middle East and Norway in a $635 million deal (£508m).

The French oil giant has agreed to offload stakes in a range of mature fields off North East Scotland to Oman-based conglomerate MB Holding and Norway-based private equity investor HitecVision.

Total said the sale of the non-core assets will allow it to focus on North Sea fields with lower operating costs.