Woodside Petroleum and BHP have aligned their participating interests across the retention licenses WA-1-R (Scarborough field) and WA-62-R (North Scarborough field) offshore Western Australia ahead of the proposed gas development project.
The alignment means that Woodside holds a 73.5% interest across the two permits, while BHP has 26.5% interest in each title.
Additionally, the companies have agreed to apply for production licenses in respect of both licenses.
Peter Coleman, Woodside chief executive officer, said the alignment will support the development of Scarborough field and it demonstrates the commitment of the joint venture to reach a final investment decision this year.
“The production license applications are another key step to unlocking the full value of the Scarborough resource through the expansion of Woodside’s existing Pluto LNG facility (on the Burrup Peninsula),” he said.
Scarborough field, on the Exmouth Plateau, was originally discovered by the Esso/BHP partnership in 1979. It contains an estimated contingent resource (2C) dry gas volume of 11.1 tcf.
The aim is to bring the field on stream in 2024.