The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) announced today that it will release a Statement of Issues (SOI) later this week on the proposed acquisition outlining the watchdog’s concerns.
“The ACCC is announcing its decision in advance of publishing the SOI to provide APA with its preliminary view, prior to the completion of EnergyAustralia’s tender process,” a statement from the ACCC said.
The SOI is expected to be published by 2 October.
REST Industry Super, Queensland-based asset manager QIC and the China Investment Corporation also launched bids to purchase the $A1 billion Iona Gas Plant, however APA Group has long been considered the most likely buyer of the plant.
APA already owns a suite of Victorian assets including the Dandenong LNG Storage Facility, which has a contracted capacity of approximately 12,000 tonnes (or 0.7 PJ); its metering business and Victorian Transmission System (VTS) network of high pressure gas pipelines has prompted a review into the bidding process by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission.
Lazard Asset Management is overseeing the sale of the Iona Gas Plant.
Iona Gas Plant supplies gas into the Victorian market via the 144 km, 500 mm South West Pipeline, and into the South Australian market via the 707 km, 350-450 mm South East Australia Gas (SEA Gas) Pipeline.
Located adjacent to the Otway Gas Plant, Iona is connected to the nearby Minerva Gas Plant via the SEA Gas Pipeline.
The plant includes two gas processing trains and compression equipment to process gas from the storage reservoirs and the offshore Casino development.