Woodside investors approve merger with BHP upstream arm
Shareholders in Australian independent Woodside Petroleum have approved a merger with the petroleum arm of Australian resources firm BHP to create Australia's largest oil and gas producer.
The A$41bn ($28.7bn) all-share transaction is expected to be completed on 1 June. More than 98pc of the proxy and direct votes were in favour of Woodside merging with BHP's oil and gas operations to create a producer with an output of around 550,000 b/d of oil equivalent (boe/d).
BHP shareholders will receive Woodside shares rather than cash and existing Woodside shareholders will own 52pc of the enlarged company. BHP shareholders will own the remaining 48pc. BHP will focus on mining activities in iron ore, coking coal, copper, nickel and potash once the merger is complete.
Woodside earlier this week received its last outstanding regulatory condition for the merger when the National Offshore Petroleum Titles Administrator (Nopta) approved the merger. Nopta is Australia's regulator responsible for issuing exploration and upstream development permits for offshore areas overseen by the federal government.
When the merger was first unveiled in August, Woodside said the combined production of the merged company will be 46pc LNG, 29pc oil and condensate and 25pc domestic gas and liquids.
Production assets will combine interests in three LNG projects offshore Western Australia (WA), domestic gas in eastern Australia and oil projects in the US Gulf of Mexico, and Trinidad and Tobago. More than 59pc of the combined proven and probable reserves will be natural gas and 41pc liquids.
Woodside and BHP are also partners in the 16.3mn t/yr North West Shelf (NWS) LNG venture offshore WA, the country's biggest LNG plant, where they each own a 16.6pc stake. They are also partners in the 13 trillion ft³ (368bn m³) greater Scarborough fields in the Carnarvon basin offshore WA, which will provide feedstock gas for a second 5mn t/yr train at the 4.3mn t/yr Pluto LNG venture offshore and backfill for the NWS LNG project.
One of the first decisions of the enlarged group is a final investment decision on Mexico's deepwater Trion oil field from mid-2022, aiming to first complete studies under the current front-end engineering and design planning stage.
Woodside shareholders also voted on several other issues at the firm's annual meeting, with 48.97pc of shareholders voting against Woodside's climate plan.
"We acknowledge that the energy transition is a complex and ongoing process," Woodside chairman Richard Goyder said. "Our shareholders' views are important to us and will continue to inform our approach as it evolves."
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Hurricane Helene shuts in 29pc of US Gulf oil
Hurricane Helene shuts in 29pc of US Gulf oil
New York, 25 September (Argus) — Hurricane Helene, which is forecast to intensify as it heads for a late Thursday landfall in Florida, has shut in about 29pc of US Gulf of Mexico oil output. Around 511,000 b/d of US offshore oil output was off line as of 12:30pm ET, according to the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE), while 313mn cf/d of natural gas production, or 17pc of the region's output, was also off line. Operators have so far evacuated workers from 17 offshore platforms. Helene was last about 110 miles north-northeast of Cozumel, Mexico, according to a 2pm ET advisory from the US National Hurricane Center, with maximum sustained winds of 80 mph. Helene is expected to be a major hurricane, with winds of at least 111mph, when it reaches the eastern Florida coast on Thursday evening. "A turn toward the north and north-northeast with an increase in forward speed is expected later today through Thursday, bringing the center of Helene across the eastern Gulf of Mexico and to the Florida Big Bend coast by Thursday evening," the center said. Shell restarting some production Although the hurricane will largely pass to the east of most offshore oil and gas production areas, companies have taken precautionary measures. Given a shift in the forecast track, Shell said late Tuesday that it had started to ramp up production at the Appomattox platform to normal levels, and was in the process of restoring output at the Stones facility, both off the coast of Louisiana. It paused some drilling operations. Chevron said earlier it was shutting in production at company-operated facilities in the Gulf of Mexico, and evacuating all workers. Equinor said it was shutting down the Titan oil platform. BP had earlier this week started to shut in production at its Na Kika and Thunder Horse platforms, southeast of New Orleans, and was curtailing output from its Argos and Atlantis facilities, as well as removing non-essential staff. US offshore production was disrupted earlier this month when Hurricane Francine made landfall, with up to 42pc of production was offline at one point. The offshore Gulf of Mexico accounts for around 15pc of total US crude output and 5pc of US natural gas production. By Stephen Cunningham Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
LNG glut coming and may catch many by surprise: Orsted
LNG glut coming and may catch many by surprise: Orsted
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Vertex Energy files for bankruptcy, seeks sale
Vertex Energy files for bankruptcy, seeks sale
Houston, 25 September (Argus) — Specialty refiner Vertex Energy has filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy in a US court following a failed foray into renewable fuels production at its 88,000 b/d Mobile, Alabama, refinery. Vertex has entered into a restructuring support agreement with its lenders and secured $80mn of new funding to finance its day-to-day business operations, the company said late Tuesday. The refiner is also considering a "more value-maximizing sale transaction" and expects to confirm its chapter 11 bankruptcy plan by the end of the year, according to the 24 September press release. Vertex announced in May this year that it would "pause" renewable diesel production at its Alabama refinery and return the unit to producing fossil fuel products. The company later said it would use a third quarter turnaround to return the Alabama plant's converted hydrocracking unit to processing fossil fuel feedstocks and be back online in the fourth quarter. Vertex also operates a re-refinery near New Orleans, Louisiana, that produces low-sulfur vacuum gas oil (VGO) and multiple used motor oil (UMO) processing plants and collection facilities along the Gulf coast. Refiners have faced mixed fortunes in recent years with their investments in renewable fuels after a glut of new supply flooded markets and depressed renewable credit prices. US independent refiner Delek announced in August that it is temporarily idling three biodiesel plants in Texas, Arkansas and Mississippi as it explores alternative uses for the sites. Chevron said earlier this year it was indefinitely closing two biodiesel plants in Wisconsin and Iowa due to market conditions. By Nathan Risser Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Helene shuts in about 16pc of US Gulf oil: Update 2
Helene shuts in about 16pc of US Gulf oil: Update 2
Adds daily spot market crude pricing information. New York, 24 September (Argus) — Tropical storm Helene, which is expected to develop into a hurricane on Wednesday before coming ashore in Florida Thursday, has shut in about 16pc of US Gulf of Mexico oil output. Around 284,000 b/d of US offshore oil output was off line as of 12:30pm ET, according to the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE), while 208mn cf/d of natural gas production, or 11pc of the region's output, was also off line. Operators have so far evacuated workers from four offshore production platforms. Helene was last about 175 miles east-southeast of Cozumel, Mexico, according to a 2pm ET advisory from the US National Hurricane Center, with maximum sustained winds of 45 mph. The current forecast has the center of Helene entering the eastern Gulf of Mexico Wednesday morning and moving north-northeast toward a possible landfall near the Florida panhandle region late Thursday. By then it will have strengthened into a major hurricane, with winds of at least 111mph, according to forecasts. While the storm will largely pass to the east of most offshore oil and gas production areas, companies started suspended some operations on Sunday. Chevron began evacuating workers and shutting in its Blind Faith and Petronius platforms. "While we are also transporting nonessential personnel from our four other Chevron-operated Gulf of Mexico platforms, production there remains at normal levels," the company said. Shell said Monday it had shut in output from its Stones facility and curtailed production from the Appomattox platform, both off the coast of Louisiana. The company was also relocating non-essential workers from its assets in the Mars corridor, and suspending some drilling operations. Equinor said it was shutting down the Titan oil platform as a precaution. BP had started to shut in production at its Na Kika and Thunder Horse platforms, southeast of New Orleans, and was curtailing output from its Argos and Atlantis facilities, as well as removing non-essential staff. Offshore spot prices rise slightly The Na Kika platform is connected by pipeline to the Shell-operated Delta pipeline system, which carries Heavy Louisiana Sweet (HLS) crude to shore. During trading on Tuesday, October HLS rose by 20¢/bl relative to the light sweet crude benchmark in Cushing, Oklahoma, to an 80¢/bl discount. The October US pipeline trade month ends Wednesday. The Thunder Horse platform production is marketed as part of a sour crude stream by the same name that is priced at the Louisiana Offshore Oil Pipeline's (LOOP) facility in Clovelly, Louisiana, where it has dedicated underground cavern storage, as does Mars. On Tuesday, Thunder Horse traded at a 50¢/bl discount to the Cushing benchmark, after wide discussion circled a 40¢/bl discount in the prior session. Medium sour secondary benchmark Mars tightened its gap to the Cushing basis by 30¢/bl to a volume-weighted average discount of roughly $1.55/bl. Crude production from the 140,000 b/d capacity Argos platform feeds into the Cameron Highway Oil Pipeline System (CHOPS), which carries Southern Green Canyon (SGC) crude to the Texas Gulf coast. Argos platform serves the Mad Dog 2 field development that came online last year. Atlantis production also feeds into SGC. No SGC transactions were reported on Tuesday. It was offered as low as $1/bl under the Cushing benchmark, lower than trade at a 50¢/bl discount in the prior session. US offshore production was disrupted earlier this month when Hurricane Francine made landfall as a category 1 storm. Up to 42pc of production was offline at one point. The offshore Gulf of Mexico accounts for around 15pc of total US crude output and 5pc of US natural gas production. By Stephen Cunningham Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
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