Heritage Oil has said the sale of its assets in Uganda to the UK's Tullow Oil will be approved "imminently".

In a statement, the Jersey-based firm said it and Tullow were working closely with the Ugandan government to obtain formal approval for the sale.

Italian energy company Eni, which had also shown an interest, dropped out of a deal to buy the assets.

Tullow and Heritage each hold a 50% share in two Ugandan oil fields, while Tullow owns a third field outright.

Tullow said it had raised $1.35bn (£864m) to buy the 50% owned in the two sites by its partner Heritage Oil.

Heritage had agreed to sell its half stake in the two fields in the Lake Albert Rift Basin to Eni.

However, Tullow had an option to buy the stake if it matched any offer.