Agree! I got the sense from watching the STO Q&A that KG was...

Agree!

I got the sense from watching the STO Q&A that KG was openly playing a mini-strategic game here with the WA government. He stated something to the effect of "We're not going to FID until we have some security that all the environmental approvals won't be backtracked or unwound". And the WDS interest in gas in WA also means that they're interested in the outcome of the WA govt's EPA review.

So the control of all of STO's assets in WA are of interest to WDS. Whether as part of a merger or a separate transaction, WDS has first dibs and won't be impressed with BPT or CPC (or anyone else) lobbing in a bid for CVN to get their nose in front. We could still get shafted if the merger talks have effectively "locked up" the STO assets and WDS take the view that the small CVN fish can be safely sold off without the big STO fish being gutted.