"The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has cleared Australian independent Santos and utility TRUenergy's takeover of New South Wales (NSW) coal-bed methane (CBM) producer Eastern Star Gas.
The ACCC concluded that the deal was unlikely to substantially reduce competition in the domestic gas market because there would continue to be several alternative sources in eastern Australia.
Santos offered A$924mn ($980mn) for Eastern Star Gas in mid-July to help shore up supply for its LNG export projects and domestic gas power plants. The deal still needs approval from Eastern Star Gas' shareholders and legal approval. It is on track to be completed by the end of October.
The board of Eastern Star unanimously accepted the offer, which values Eastern Star's shares at A$0.90, 51pc above the closing price on 15 July of A$0.59/share. Santos, which already owns 20.9pc of Eastern Star, will sell 20pc of Eastern Star's CBM permits to Hong Kong-listed utility TruEnergy, which holds 3.8pc of Eastern Star, for A$284mn."
Yaq
ESG Price at posting:
78.5¢ Sentiment: Buy Disclosure: Held
