Things are getting tougher out there as far as anyone wanting to buy
good assets in Australia.
Apache has apparently called off their hunt for buyers of their WA assets
making even more difficult for junior like MEO to sell the likes of TS.
"Energy heavyweight
Apache Corporation may have called off the hunt for buyers of over $3 billion worth of oil and gas assets in Western Australia. The US group offloaded its stake in the giant
Wheatstone LNG project to
Woodside Petroleum in December alongside its interest in the
Balnaves oil project in Australia and the
Kitimat LNG development in Canada. However, an auction of its remaining oil and gas assets in WA has
reportedly been put on ice as buyers go cold in the wake of the ongoing slump in oil prices.
Apache’s remaining local assets -- including the
Phoenix South Discovery in the Canning Basin -- had allegedly drawn interest from
Santos and
Origin Energy, but both firms have retreated into cash preservation mode as the energy sector faces a more turbulent environment.
The oil slump is, however, putting a target on a few backs as stock price weakness places a number of local firms in the sights of offshore predators. Among the most likely targets
put forward by analysts are
Beach Energy and
Senex Energy, while long-awaited deals between Cooper Basin players such as Beach, Senex and
Drillsearch Energy could also be on the cards."
http://www.businessspectator.com.au...l&utm_content=1086917&utm_campaign=am&modapt=
