PetroChina buys Conoco's WA gas stakeDate: February 21, 2013 -...

PetroChina buys Conoco's WA gas stake

Date: February 21, 2013 - 8:17AM

Asia's largest oil producer, PetroChina, is to buy some of ConocoPhillips' stake in two Western Australia exploration assets.

PetroChina will acquire 20 per cent of Poseidon gas field in the Browse Basin offshore Western Australia and 29 per cent of onshore shale formation Goldwyer in the Canning Basin, also in WA.

According to Conoco's website, the company owns 60 per cent of some exploration permits in the Browse Basin. Karoon Gas holds the remaining interests.

The deal comes two months after PetroChina agreed to buy BHP Billiton's stake in the Woodside Petroleum-led Browse LNG project, estimated to cost $30 billion to build.

Advertisement State-owned PetroChina has set aside $16 billion for overseas investment in 2013.

China's state-owned energy giants have been bidding aggressively for foreign oil and gas fields as Beijing looks to secure energy supplies to meet rising demand.

The country aims to double the share of gas in its overall energy mix to more than 8 per cent by 2015.

Under Wednesday's deal, ConocoPhillips and PetroChina will also study the potential for unconventional resource development in the 500,000 acre Neijiang-Dazu Shale formation in the Sichuan Basin in southwestern China.

Financial details of the deal were not disclosed.

Shares of Houston-based Conoco were down 1 per cent at $57.97 on the New York Stock Exchange on Wednesday.

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/business/petrochina-buys-conocos-wa-gas-stake-20130221-2esgb.html