* Petromanas sells Albanian assets to Shell
* Albania sees Shell's full ownership as good sign
TIRANA, Feb 2 (Reuters) - Petromanas Energy Inc, asmall Canadian company that helped to draw Royal Dutch Shell to Albania, sold all its assets in the Balkan countryto Shell's local branch for $45 million, Petromanas said in astatement.
Thanks to its technical expertise, Petromanas got Shellinterested with its drilling at Shpiragu well in southernAlbania, close to a spot where Occidental found oil innon-commercial quantities more than a decade ago.
Shell first bought a 50 percent stake in their joint venturein 2012, and increased it to 75 percent in 2013. LaterPetromanas announced they had found light oil and sweet gas atShpiragu and also drilled a well nearby in Molisht.
"Shell has agreed to acquire all of Petromanas' Albanianassets for aggregate gross proceeds of US$45 million (subject toclosing adjustments)," Petromanas said, adding the deal wasexpected to close around March 15.
Petromanas is winding up its operations in Albania and plansto return around $43 million of the proceeds to itsshareholders.
The fields being developed by the joint venture are to theeast of the Patos Marinza oilfield, the biggest in Albania.
Albania's Energy Minister Damian Gjiknuri said Shell'spurchase was a good signal and a vote of confidence forAlbania's oil and gas policies.
"When a company like Shell acquires 100 percent of theshares and the operatorship even in the hard times of low oilprices, we can only be thrilled for the future of the industry,"Gjiknuri told Reuters.
Shell Upstream Albania was not immediately available forcomment. (Reporting By Benet Koleka; Editing by Keith Weir)
