Australia's Carnarvon expects to close Bedout divestment in Q3

Australia’s Carnarvon Energy on July 10 said that the closure of its agreement to sell a 10% interest in its Bedout assets offshore Western Australia to OPIC Australia, a subsidiary of Taiwan's CPC Corporation, is expected to be completed in Q3 of this year. The deal, initially announced in February, involves a cash consideration of $146mn.

The only one condition relating to the transaction that remains to be satisfied is the approval of the Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB). “The parties are targeting satisfaction of the final condition, and completion of the transaction under the terms of the sale agreement, in this current quarter (Q3, 2023),” the company stated.

Under the terms of the agreement, Carnarvon will receive an upfront payment of $56mn upon completion of the transaction. Additionally, once a final investment decision (FID) is made on the Dorado development, Carnarvon will receive a carry of $90mn for its forward expenditure in the Bedout permits.

Carnarvon's Bedout assets include the WA-64-L production license, which holds the Dorado field, as well as several exploration permits. The sale of the 10% interest will result in a corresponding decrease in Carnarvon's ownership across all the assets.

Santos holds an 80% interest in the Dorado field and a 70% interest in the Pavo field, operating both of them. Earlier this year, Santos received regulatory approval for its Dorado oil and gas project. Dorado now has the primary regulatory approvals required to support development.

CPC, Taiwan's national oil and gas company, has already established itself as an investor in Australian oil and gas assets, with interests in projects such as the Prelude FLNG and Ichthys LNG. They have also successfully obtained FIRB approval for acquiring an interest in exploration permit WA-533-P from Japan’s Inpex.