ExxonMobil Testing Interest for Assets in Southeastern Australia
18 Septiembre 2019 - 03:46AM
Noticias Dow Jones
By Robb M. Stewart
MELBOURNE, Australia--Energy giant Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) is
seeking an exit from its producing assets in southeastern Australia
as part of a broader review of its global portfolio.
Exxon said Wednesday it is testing market interest in assets
including its interest in oil-and-gas fields in the Gippsland Basin
in Bass Strait off the state of Victoria, offshore platforms and
its Longford and Long Island Point plants. The company is
considering selling off a number of assets around the world.
The Bass Strait assets are part of the Exxon-operated Gippsland
Basin Joint Venture, owned equally with global miner BHP Group Ltd.
(BHP.AU).
No agreements have been reached and no buyer for the Australian
assets has been identified, spokesman Travis Parnaby said.
In an emailed statement, the company said it continually reviews
its assets for their contribution toward operating needs, financial
objectives and their potential value to others. The operations
would continue as normal throughout the sale efforts, Exxon
said.
A BHP spokesman declined to comment on whether the mining
company would consider selling its own stake in the Bass Strait
assets or buy Exxon's.
BHP said it had been notified by Exxon of its intention to
market its Bass Strait interests.
The Gippsland venture began operations in 1964 and drilled its
first well a year later. The discovery of vast crude oil and gas
reserves in Bass Strait in the 1960s markedly changed Australia's
refining industry, as companies began processing locally produced
oil instead of imports.
Late last year, Exxon made the final investment decision to
develop the West Barracouta gas field in Bass Strait to bring new
supplies to the domestic market by 2021, building on more than 5.5
billion Australian dollars (US$3.8 billion) invested by the venture
in recent projects, including in a large offshore project and the
Longford gas-conditioning plant.
Not up for sale is Exxon's big Gorgon liquefied natural gas
project on Barrow Island in Western Australia, which began
producing in March 2016, exporting natural gas to Asia and
supplying domestic customers in the state.
Write to Robb M. Stewart at robb.stewart@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
September 18, 2019 04:31 ET (08:31 GMT)
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