LIQUEFIED NATURAL GAS INDUSTRY – AUSTRALIA

Santos pitches value of shares in long term

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Original article by Angela Macdonald-Smith
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 : 23-Nov-15

Retail investors will be offered shares in Santos at $A3.85 apiece in the oil and gas producer’s entitlement offer. Santos is seeking to raise $A1.375bn from retail investors and $A2.5bn overall. The rights issue is part of a broader strategy aimed at reducing group debt. Neil Beveridge of Bernstein suggests that Santos could attract another private equity buyer, after the group rebuffed a bid from Scepter Partners in October 2015.

CORPORATES
SANTOS LIMITED – ASX STO, BERNSTEIN AND ASSOCIATES, SCEPTER PARTNERS, HONY CAPITAL LIMITED, BLOOMBERG LP

Buyers turn to FIRB as ACCC clears Shell-BG

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Original article by Angela Macdonald-Smith
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 & 18 : 20-Nov-15

Manufacturing Australia chairman Mark Chellew hopes the Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB) will consider whether Royal Dutch Shell’s $US70bn ($A98bn) takeover of BG Group is in the national interest. The deal requires FIRB approval following the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission’s decision to approve it without any conditions. Domestic gas users are concerned that the merger will result in offshore buyers gaining priority in Queensland LNG supply deals.

CORPORATES
ROYAL DUTCH SHELL PLC, BG GROUP PLC, MANUFACTURING AUSTRALIA LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. FOREIGN INVESTMENT REVIEW BOARD, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, ARROW ENERGY LIMITED, PETROCHINA COMPANY LIMITED, WOODSIDE PETROLEUM LIMITED – ASX WPL

Chinese rescue Santos

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Original article by Simon Evans, Angela Macdonald-Smith, Sarah Thompson, Anthony Macdonald
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 12 : 10-Nov-15

China-based Hony Capital will initially acquire a 9.9 per cent stake in Santos for $A500m, although its participation in a $A2.5bn rights issue means the private equity firm will invest about $A700m in the oil and gas group in total. Santos investors will be offered new shares at $A3.85 apiece, compared with the group’s closing price of $A5.91 on 6 November 2015. Meanwhile, Clough CEO Kevin Gallagher will become CEO of Santos in early 2016.

CORPORATES
SANTOS LIMITED – ASX STO, HONY CAPITAL LIMITED, CLOUGH LIMITED, WOODSIDE PETROLEUM LIMITED – ASX WPL, PIZZA EXPRESS, SWISSE WELLNESS PTY LTD, BIOSTIME INTERNATIONAL HOLDINGS LIMITED, SCEPTER PARTNERS, BERNSTEIN AND ASSOCIATES, DEUTSCHE BANK AG, LAZARD PTY LTD, LEGEND GROUP LIMITED, TEMASEK HOLDINGS (PTE) LTD

Armour Energy to target LNG markets with AEP

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Original article by Angela Macdonald-Smith
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 18 : 9-Nov-15

Australian-listed Armour Energy will undertake a shale exploration program in the Northern Territory’s McArthur Basin in partnership with American Energy Partners (AEP). Armour shareholders approved the farm-in agreement in late October 2015, while AEP plans to acquire a 13.62 per cent stake in Armour at $A0.25 per share. Armour recently spurned a $A61m takeover offer from WestSide, a subsidiary of China-based Landbridge.

CORPORATES
ARMOUR ENERGY LIMITED – ASX AJQ, AMERICAN ENERGY PARTNERS, WESTSIDE CORPORATION LIMITED, LANDBRIDGE GROUP COMPANY LIMITED, DGR GLOBAL LIMITED – ASX DGR

Low oil prices won’t stop LNG boom: HSBC

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Original article by Angela Macdonald-Smith
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 & 20 : 4-Nov-15

HSBC’s global head of commodities, Jean-Francois Lambert, expects the crude oil price to trade within a range of $US45 to $US55 per barrel over the next several years. However, he is upbeat about the outlook for Australian LNG producers, arguing that they will adapt to the lower oil price, which has in turn put downward pressure on LNG prices. Meanwhile, HSBC expects the iron ore price to fall to $US52 per tonne in 2016.

CORPORATES
HSBC HOLDINGS PLC

Botten unfazed by overtures from Woodside

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Original article by Angela Macdonald-Smith
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 23 : 29-Oct-15

Oil Search CEO Peter Botten says the group’s healthy balance sheet and strong growth prospects means it can focus on expanding its business rather than the spurned takeover offer from Woodside Petroleum. Botten adds that Oil Search would be open to a takeover offer that was appropriately priced, and he anticipates further merger activity in the oil and gas sector. He also forecasts that the oil price will remain at around its current level in the near-term.

CORPORATES
OIL SEARCH LIMITED – ASX OSH, WOODSIDE PETROLEUM LIMITED – ASX WPL, SANTOS LIMITED – ASX STO, MARUBENI CORPORATION

Woodside claims misreporting, keeps door open for Oil Search

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Original article by Angela Macdonald-Smith
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 19 : 28-Oct-15

Woodside Petroleum is believed to have no immediate plans to sweeten its $A11.6bn takeover offer for Oil Search, but it may be amenable to doing so. CEO Peter Coleman has indicated that the offer is "fair and fully priced", although Woodside has advised that Dow Jones Newswires incorrectly reported that he had also said that Woodside has no intention of increasing the offer.

CORPORATES
WOODSIDE PETROLEUM LIMITED – ASX WPL, OIL SEARCH LIMITED – ASX OSH, DOW JONES NEWSWIRES, BANK OF AMERICA AUSTRALIA LIMITED, MERRILL LYNCH (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, KIMA CAPITAL

Santos rejects Scepter’s $7bn takeover bid

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Original article by Matt Chambers
The Australian – Page: 21 & 24 : 23-Oct-15

Shares in oil and gas producer Santos closed 16 per cent higher at $A6.32 on 22 October 2015, in response to a takeover approach from Scepter Partners. The Bermuda-based private equity firm’s $A7.14bn non-binding offer is pitched at $A6.88 per share, which has been described as "opportunistic" by Santos. Romano Sala Tenna of Katana Asset Management agrees with this assessment, although Mark Samter of Credit Suisse believes that Scepter’s offer represents good value for Santos investors.

CORPORATES
SANTOS LIMITED – ASX STO, SCEPTER PARTNERS, KATANA ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED, CREDIT SUISSE (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED, DEUTSCHE BANK AG, HSBC HOLDINGS PLC, GLENCORE PLC, XSTRATA PLC, VODAFONE GROUP PLC, BLACKSTONE ADVISORY PARTNERS ASIA, CITIGROUP PTY LTD

Total, Petronas on lookout for local bargains

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Original article by Angela Macdonald-Smith
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 : 19-Oct-15

France-based Total’s investments in Australia include stakes in the Gladstone and Ichthys LNG projects. Australian MD Petter Undem says Total is interested in acquisitions in the local oil and gas sector, including a desire to become the operator of an LNG project rather than just a minority stakeholder. Malaysia-based Petronas – which also has a stake in the Gladstone project – has indicated that it too is keen to pursue acquisitions in Australia.

CORPORATES
TOTAL SA, TOTAL E&P AUSTRALIA, PETROLIAM NASIONAL BERHAD, SANTOS LIMITED – ASX STO, GLADSTONE LNG PTY LTD, INPEX CORPORATION, ICHTHYS LNG PTY LTD, INTEROIL CORPORATION, CENTRAL PETROLEUM LIMITED – ASX CTP, PROGRESS ENERGY INCORPORATED

Analysts wary of Woodside Petroleum hiking Oil Search offer price

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Original article by Brian Robins
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 : 16-Oct-15

Woodside Petroleum’s revenue rose by 21 per cent to $US1.09bn ($A1.5bn) in the September 2015 quarter, although it fell by 44.6 per cent year-on-year due to the impact of the lower crude oil price. Production was 26 per cent higher than the June quarter, at 25.3 million barrels of oil equivalent. Meanwhile, some analysts have downplayed the potential for Woodside to increase its takeover offer for Oil Search.

CORPORATES
WOODSIDE PETROLEUM LIMITED – ASX WPL, OIL SEARCH LIMITED – ASX OSH, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG, GMP SECURITIES LP, CHEVRON CORPORATION