BHP Handing Smaller than Expected $3.9B Clean-up tab to Woodside in Oil Merger

Sonali Paul
Tuesday, September 14, 2021
For illustration only - BHP's Shenzi platform in the Gulf of Mexico - Credit: BHP

BHP Group will transfer a smaller-than-expected $3.9 billion in oil and gas decommissioning liabilities to Woodside when it merges its petroleum business with the independent Australian gas producer.

Woodside's shares jumped 6.5% after the figure was disclosed in BHP's annual report on Tuesday, outperforming gains of around 4% among its peers.

"The long-awaited BHPP (BHP Petroleum) abandonment provision number has been released, coming in below what we feared it could be," Credit Suisse analyst Saul Kavonic said in a note.

BHP said in its annual report that as of June 2021, its petroleum assets included "property plant and equipment and closure and rehabilitation provisions of approximately $11.9 billion and $3.9 billion, respectively".

When the merger was announced in August, investors had raised concerns as Woodside declined to reveal the rehabilitation liabilities that were assumed in setting the deal terms with BHP's petroleum business to create a global top-10 independent oil and gas company.

The oil and gas rehabilitation provisions, which are estimates of the cost of removing platforms and pipelines and cleaning up sites at the end of their lives, make up about one-third of BHP's total closure and rehabilitation provisions of $11.9 billion for all its assets.

Kavonic said he had assumed Woodside might inherit as much as $5 billion to $7 billion in decommissioning liabilities in the merger with BHP's petroleum arm, which comprises assets in Australia, the Gulf of Mexico, Trinidad and Tobago, and Algeria.

Citi had estimated BHP's decommissioning liabilities in Australia's Bass Strait alone at $3.4 billion.

Once tax offsets are taken into account, the actual decommissioning cost may be below $1 billion, Kavonic said, adding that those costs could be deferred through reusing sites for activities such as carbon capture and storage or offshore wind in the future. 

(Reporting by Sonali Paul; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman)

Categories: Energy Mergers & Acquisitions Industry News Activity Decommissioning Australia/NZ

Related Stories

Op-Ed: Kazakhstan’s National O&G Firm Positioning Itself as Global Energy Player

Op-Ed: Kazakhstan’s National O&G Firm Positioning Itself as Global Energy Player

‘Ultra-Mega’ Offshore Deal for L&T at QatarEnergy LNG’s North Field Gas Scheme

‘Ultra-Mega’ Offshore Deal for L&T at QatarEnergy LNG’s North Field Gas Scheme

EnerMech Names APAC Regional Chief

EnerMech Names APAC Regional Chief

Woodside Inks Long-Term LNG Supply Deal with China Resources

Woodside Inks Long-Term LNG Supply Deal with China Resources

Malaysia's Petronas Plans Job Cuts

Europe's Gas Uncertainty Help Drive Asian LNG Spot Prices Higher

ADES’ Fourth Suspended Jack-Up Rig Gets Work Offshore Thailand

Transocean’s Drillship to Stay in India Under New $111M Deal

Harbour Energy, Mubadala Sign Deals for Central Andaman Block Off Indonesia

Yinson and PetroVietnam JV Get FSO Contract for Vietnamese Field

Current News

Fire at Petronas Gas Pipeline in Malaysia Sends 63 to Hospital

Japan’s ENEOS Xplora, PVEP Ink Deal for Vietnam Offshore Block

CNOOC Makes Major Oil and Gas Discovery in South China Sea

Valeura’s Assets in Gulf of Thailand Remain Operational After Earthquake

Op-Ed: Kazakhstan’s National O&G Firm Positioning Itself as Global Energy Player

Woodside to Shed Some Trinidad and Tobago Assets for $206M

CNOOC Sees 11% Profit Growth in 2024 Driven by Record Oil Production

‘Ultra-Mega’ Offshore Deal for L&T at QatarEnergy LNG’s North Field Gas Scheme

Keel Laying for Wind Flyer Trimaran Crew Boat

MODEC Gets Shell’s Gato do Mato FPSO Ops and Maintenance Job

photo

Subscribe for AOG Digital E‑News

AOG Digital E-News is the subsea industry's largest circulation and most authoritative ENews Service, delivered to your Email three times per week

https://accounts.newwavemedia.com