Rick Wilkinson
OGJ Correspondent
MELBOURNE, Sept. 28 -- Thai state oil firm PTT Exploration & Production PCL (PTTEP) consolidated its Timor Sea assets with the acquisition of OMV Timor Sea Pty. Ltd., a subsidiary of OMV Australia Pty. Ltd., in a deal valued at $10 million.
OMV Timor Sea currently operates Audacious and Tenacious offshore fields, which have oil potential and could start oil production within 2 years, together with their five exploration blocks: AC/RL4&5, AC/RL6, AC/P4, AC/P17, and AC/P24. In addition, OMV Timor Sea holds 18.75% interest in the producing Jabiru and Challis offshore oil fields, which PTTEP is now the operator with 70.9375% interest.
The move is in line with PTTEP’s plans to expand in Australia and will provide cost savings from the synergy of existing project facilities.
For its part OMV’s divestment of the Timor Sea assets will enable the company to focus on its large acreage holding of seven permits in the Carnarvon basin off the west coast of Western Australia.
PTTEP is still 2 weeks away from completing a relief well being drilled to stem the oil leak from a Montara field development well in the Timor Sea to the east of the Jabiru-Challis area. The field is still spilling oil into the sea at a rate of 400 b/d.
Photo from TotalEnergies.
