This represents the first stage of Woodside’s $2.5 billion equity raising, which aims to provide for the acquisition of an addition 50 per cent stake in the Scarborough gas field; and for general corporate purposes, including funding support for Scarborough and Senegal developments and to progress development of Browse to targeted final investment decision (FID).
“We consider this a positive endorsement of our strategy, with the equity raising underpinning the acquisition of of an increased interest in the Scarborough resource and its development, as well as progressing other projects in Woodside’s portfolio,”? said Woodside CEO Peter Coleman.
The retail component of the offer will open tomorrow, with eligible shareholders able to subscribe for one new share for every nine Woodside shares held at a price of $27 per share to raise a further $960 million.
The Scarborough asset areas include the Scarborough, Thebe and Jupiter gas fields, which are estimated to contain gross 8.7 Tcf of dry gas resources.
Woodside plans to pipe 6 MMt/a of gas from the Scarborough field to its Pluto LNG Plant in the Pilbara region of Western Australia.
ExxonMobil’s affiliate, Esso Australia Resources Pty Ltd, is currently the operator and owner of 50 per cent of the Scarborough gas field in a joint venture with BHP Billiton (25 per cent) and Woodside (25 per cent).
Discovered in 1979, the Scarborough field is located off the coast of Western Australia approximately 220 km northwest of Exmouth in 900 m of water.