Latest news with #LouisianaLNG
Yahoo
10 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Australia's Woodside Energy files for arbitration against Senegal
Woodside Energy, the operator of Senegal's Sangomar oil and gas field, has initiated arbitration proceedings against the West African nation. The dispute pertains to tax issues, with the company filing a complaint with the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID), a World Bank-affiliated body. The complaint, filed on 30 May, names Senegal's Ministry of Petroleum and Energy as the respondent. Woodside Energy, which holds an 82% participating interest in the project, previously took legal action in Senegal last August over a tax assessment dispute. Despite efforts to resolve the outstanding tax issues, the company's spokesperson stated that certain matters remain unresolved, prompting the request for international arbitration. The spokesperson said via email, as quoted by Reuters: "Woodside strongly believes we have acted in accordance with applicable regulations... and there are no outstanding taxes payable.' The Senegal Energy Ministry has yet to comment on the matter. The specific details of the complaint lodged with the ICSID have not been disclosed to the public. This legal move comes after Woodside Energy previous challenged a tax assessment in the Senegalese court in August 2024, which the company considered unjustified. In 2024, Senegal had set up a commission to investigate various oil and gas contracts the country has signed with multinational corporations. Last month, Woodside Energy signed a non-binding agreement with Aramco to explore potential collaborations. This includes the possibility of Aramco acquiring an equity interest in the Louisiana LNG (liquefied natural gas) project in the US and securing LNG offtake rights. "Australia's Woodside Energy files for arbitration against Senegal" was originally created and published by Offshore Technology, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Woodside Energy Expands into U.S. LNG Market
Suppose you wanted to get into the LNG business in the U.S. to take advantage of the global low-cost of supply advantage held by America. So the desire and the rationale are there, but you'd like to avoid some of the headaches associated with building a liquefaction facility. Site selection, permitting, financing, and associated infrastructure to support moving field gas to your site; essentially 7-10 years' worth of work and trouble before you ever make a dime. In the meantime, maybe your stock tanks from upfront capex and interest charges, perhaps the commodity market turns against you, or a competitor beats you to the market and soaks up all the good offtake contracts. A myriad of stinging little flies to potentially beset you as you lurch toward FID. If you're a typical CEO, your consumption of aspirin and antacids begins to rise exponentially. Or you could just buy one off the shelf. One fully the biggest of these headaches, with ground already broken from an operator nearing bankruptcy and willing to sell for a song. It should also be noted that Driftwood was advantaged by sitting just below one of the largest gas fields in North America, with access to other basins already in place, and new, company-owned pipelines to bring gas already under development. That's the position Woodside Energy found itself in last fall. It didn't hesitate long before picking this plum off the ground. Woodside Energy, (NYSE:WDS), Australia's largest energy operator, has moved into the North American LNG market in a big way over the last 6-9 months. Beginning with its take-out of troubled LNG startup, Tellurian last fall, the company has moved at breakneck pace to move the fully permitted Driftwood LNG project along to FID. Just last month Woodside stunned the investing community by announcing FID approval for the first three trains of the 27.6 mpta Driftwood, now renamed Louisiana LNG. This is a bold move for this Australian energy producer that will bring on-line 16.5 mpta, and CEO Meg O'Neill noted the profound impact on the company in the press release- 'Louisiana LNG is a game changer for Woodside, set to position our company as a global LNG powerhouse and deliver enduring shareholder value for decades to come. Louisiana LNG combines access to an abundant US gas resource, a prime location with best-in-class EPC and technology partners. It builds on Woodside's proven strengths in project execution, operational excellence, and LNG marketing to deliver significant cash generation potential and drive long-term shareholder value.' Perhaps this move shouldn't have been a surprise. The company has been building a portfolio in the LNG space for some time now as noted in the next slide. With ground already broken by the former operator and an EPIC contract in place with Bechtel, one of the top engineering and consulting companies, much of the uncertainty around pre-FID was resolved enabling WDS to move rapidly in this regard. Some challenges remain as only about 1 mpta of the plant's approved 16.5 mpta output has been placed under long-term SPA's (Sales and Purchase Agreement), in a contract with Uniper-a, a German utility company. Other recent U.S. Gulf Coast LNG plants, notably Venture Global, and NextDecade, took the route of selling out 2/3 of their capacity before taking FID. By moving forward and entering the market in the late 2020s, WDS can leapfrog other potential projects and corner the market for supply gas. RBN in a recent blog post noted the impact that LA-LNG could have on projects still under FID review- 'An FID on a project of Louisiana LNG's magnitude — again, three trains with a combined capacity of 16.5 MMtpa — is sure to have an effect on developers promoting other, pre-FID projects along the Gulf Coast. These developers will now have a tougher job selling their projects, especially to investors and potential offtakers. Some pre-FID projects have large portions of their capacity 'contracted' but these deals are done with Heads of Agreement (HOAs) rather than SPAs, the latter of which is a binding contract for offtake while the former is a less formal agreement that either party can back out of.' Woodside's plan to derisk the project involves a significant reduction in its equity stake. One major announcement of an equity partner came last April, with Stonepeak taking a 40% equity interest in LA-LNG and funding 75% of the capital expense through 2026, thereby enabling WDS to defer its capex to 2027, when Scarborough is expected to be online. CEO Meg O' Neill was quoted at CERAWeek in a WSJ article- 'Woodside is involved in intensive discussions with a couple of parties interested in participating in its newly approved $17.5 billion Louisiana LNG gas-export project. Woodside wants to reduce its capital commitments to roughly half the cost of developing the project, which will be built in phases and is targeting production of liquefied natural gas for the first time in 2029.' Through the development of its Pacific Basin (Australian) projects, including Pluto and Scarborough, Woodside has emerged as an experienced LNG plant developer. The opportunity to acquire a derisked and permitted facility with access to low-cost U.S. gas was dangling in the market, and was ultimately seized by the company. The U.S. is the low-cost provider of natural gas globally and much of the current growth in supply from shale is being underpinned by export opportunities to capture more advantageous pricing in the Korean-JKM, and Dutch-TTF, markets. Your takeaway Woodside stock has taken a shellacking over the last year, down 25%. This is primarily due to the downdraft in commodity prices affecting cash flow, combined with high capex outlays for Scarborough. I think the company rates a buy at current levels irrespective of multiples in anticipation of a cash waterfall a few years hence for patient investors as sales ramp up and capex diminishes. With three trains online WDS has the capacity to be exporting a couple of hundred cargoes out of LA-LNG as the next decade starts, with an additional ~150 cargoes from the later brownfield development of trains 4-5. The buy case for WDS is certainly around Scarborough and LA-LNG coming on line as we head into the 2030's The company trades at a pretty attractive EV/EBITDA multiple-4.11X in comparison with other participants in the LNG cohort, including segment leader, Cheneire Energy, (NYSE:LNG) at 11X. It also pays a nearly 9% yielding dividend that is well covered by cash flow, with a payout ratio-68% that might bear a little watching. There are risks to this thesis, notably the $9.0 billion in debt the company has accumulated building Scarborough. In contrast, they have $4 billion in cash and an undrawn $6.5 billion RCF. Maturities are spaced out every 4 years, preventing any sort of a credit squeeze. The LNG market appears to have a long runway, thanks to increasing energy demand projections in Asia, Africa, and Latin America. If they don't pan out, the company could have some problems. Most analysts view the long-term market for LNG as being robust for the next several decades. If you're one of those investors who looked at Cheneire a dozen years ago at $15.00 and passed, and watched it ramp ever higher ever since, this could be your chance to get in on the fun. By David Messler for More Top Reads From this article on Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
India.com
20-05-2025
- Business
- India.com
This company inks Rs 7698822084000 deals with major US companies, no connection with Mukesh Ambani, Adani, the name is…, it is from…
Aramco signed 34 Memorandum of Understanding (MoUs) and agreements of around $90 billion, with major US companies, through its Aramco Group Companies. The MoUs and agreements are partnerships for services given by Aramco like Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG), fuels, chemicals, emission-reduction technologies, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and other digital solutions, manufacturing, asset management, short-term cash investments, and procurement of materials, equipment. The MoUs and agreements will build the longstanding relationship between Aramco and US companies and bring innovation in the energy sector and beyond. The MoUs and agreements are as follows: Honeywell UOP : MoU related to technology licensing for an aromatics project. Motiva : MoU for an aromatics project in Port Arthur depends on a final investment decision. Afton Chemical: MoUs related to development and supply of chemical fuel additives in pipelines and retail fuel offerings. ExxonMobil: MoU to evaluate an upgrade to the SAMREF refinery and expand the facility. Sempra Infrastructure: MoU related to liquified natural gas (LNG) equity and offtake stake in Port Arthur LNG 2. Woodside Energy: To explore global opportunities like equity interest and LNG offtake from the Louisiana LNG project. NextDecade: To purchase 1.2 million tonnes per annum of LNG for a 20-year term from Train 4 of the Rio Grande LNG Facility. NVIDIA: To develop advanced Industrial AI computing infrastructure, and establish an AI Hub and AI Enterprise platforms. Qualcomm: To focus on digital transformation use cases and on the basis of Aramco Digital's 450 MHz 5G industrial network connect intelligent devices with on-device AI capabilities like smartphones, robots, drones, cameras, sensors. Guardian Glass: To localize specialty glass manufacturing for architectural applications in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Agreements for short-term cash investments through a unified investment fund, the 'Fund of One,' with BlackRock, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, and PIMCO.
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Australia's Woodside, Saudi Aramco sign deal for potential Louisiana LNG stake buy
(Reuters) -Australia's Woodside Energy said on Wednesday it had entered a non-binding agreement with Aramco to explore opportunities, including the Saudi Arabian company's potential stake acquisition in the Louisiana LNG project. Woodside, Australia's top gas producer, gave the final go-ahead to build the $17.5 billion liquefied natural gas project in Louisiana last month, confident a pro-fossil fuel U.S. administration and strong demand in Europe and Asia would give it competitive returns. The approval came after Woodside agreed to sell a 40% stake in the project to U.S. infrastructure investor Stonepeak, who would contribute $5.7 billion towards the expected capital cost. The company is seeking to sell a further 20%-30% stake in Louisiana LNG. Woodside CEO Meg O'Neill said in a statement that the deal with Aramco is another demonstration of the ongoing interest Louisiana LNG is generating among high-quality potential investors. The LNG project is expected to deliver first gas in 2029. Both the companies are also exploring opportunities for LNG offtake and potential collaboration in lower-carbon ammonia, Woodside said.
Business Wire
14-05-2025
- Business
- Business Wire
INSERTING AND REPLACING Woodside and Aramco Sign Collaboration Agreement
HOUSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Insert after fifth paragraph: The collaboration agreement was signed in Riyadh at the Saudi-US Investment Forum attended by Saudi Arabian Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman and US President Donald Trump. The updated release reads: WOODSIDE AND ARAMCO SIGN COLLABORATION AGREEMENT Woodside Energy Ltd (Woodside) and Aramco entered into a non-binding collaboration agreement to explore global opportunities, including Aramco's potential acquisition of an equity interest in and LNG offtake from the Louisiana LNG project. Additionally, both companies are exploring opportunities for a potential collaboration in lower-carbon ammonia. Woodside CEO Meg O'Neill welcomed the collaboration agreement. 'We are excited to explore new opportunities with Aramco. 'This collaboration aligns with Woodside's strategic vision to build a diverse and resilient global portfolio. It leverages our growing relationship with one of the world's leading integrated energy and chemicals companies, to explore new opportunities which deliver value for both parties. 'It is also another demonstration of the ongoing interest Louisiana LNG is generating among high-quality potential investors, following our recent agreement with Stonepeak to acquire a 40% interest in the project's infrastructure holding company.' The collaboration agreement was signed in Riyadh at the Saudi-US Investment Forum attended by Saudi Arabian Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman and US President Donald Trump. Woodside announced a final investment decision to develop the three-train, 16.5 million tonnes per annum (Mtpa) Louisiana LNG development on 29 April 2025. Woodside is targeting first LNG in 2029. About Woodside Woodside is a global energy company providing reliable and affordable energy to help people lead better lives. We leverage our track record of world-class project execution and operational excellence as we build a diverse global portfolio to meet the world's growing energy needs. Woodside has more than 35 years of experience in the LNG industry, including pioneering Australia's LNG industry as operator of the North West Shelf Project. We are executing major projects today, while pursuing growth opportunities that will deliver long-term value for our shareholders. We maintain a strong balance sheet and a disciplined investment approach.
