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PetroChina, Shell tie-up moves into Australia with Arrow acquisition
2010-07-15 13:26:37Source:Global TimesAuthor:
Australian Arrow Energy shareholders approved a A$3.5 billion ($3.08 billion) acquisition by Royal Dutch Shell and PetroChina, permitting China to extract Australia's coal seam gas, Bloomberg reported Wednesday.
Shell and PetroChina agreed in March to buy Arrow's Australian business for A$4.70 ($4.14) a share in cash. Arrow investors will also receive shares in a new company, Dart Energy, which will hold the explorer's overseas gas assets and Arrow's stakes in Australian-listed companies.
Arrow supplies coal seam gas to eastern Australia and Asia. The company claims to have the largest coal seam gas reserves in Australia's state of Queensland.
Dart is set to begin trading on July 22, with the Shell and PetroChina takeover due to be implemented on August 23, Bloomberg said. But the deal still needs approval from Australian federal court by the end of this month.
An unnamed spokeswoman with Shell China press office said,"Shell China is not entitled to provide any information on this issue as the acquisition was conducted by Shell Australia."
Shell announced in March it was planning a liquefied natural gas (LNG) project on Curtis Island off the central Queensland coast. More than a dozen LNG projects in Australia are targeting Asian demand for cleaner-burning alternatives to coal, as China has been under strong criticism for its air pollution.
Calls to PetroChina went unanswered. PetroChina is aiming for a 14-fold increase in coal seam gas output by 2020, producing 10 billion cubic meters of coal seam gas per year. And China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), parent of PetroChina, forecasts gas demand of up to 300 billion cubic meters in China in 2020.
PetroChina is the world's No. 2 oil and gas producer, and controls more than 60 percent of China's gas output.
Shell and PetroChina agreed in March to buy Arrow's Australian business for A$4.70 ($4.14) a share in cash. Arrow investors will also receive shares in a new company, Dart Energy, which will hold the explorer's overseas gas assets and Arrow's stakes in Australian-listed companies.
Arrow supplies coal seam gas to eastern Australia and Asia. The company claims to have the largest coal seam gas reserves in Australia's state of Queensland.
Dart is set to begin trading on July 22, with the Shell and PetroChina takeover due to be implemented on August 23, Bloomberg said. But the deal still needs approval from Australian federal court by the end of this month.
An unnamed spokeswoman with Shell China press office said,"Shell China is not entitled to provide any information on this issue as the acquisition was conducted by Shell Australia."
Shell announced in March it was planning a liquefied natural gas (LNG) project on Curtis Island off the central Queensland coast. More than a dozen LNG projects in Australia are targeting Asian demand for cleaner-burning alternatives to coal, as China has been under strong criticism for its air pollution.
Calls to PetroChina went unanswered. PetroChina is aiming for a 14-fold increase in coal seam gas output by 2020, producing 10 billion cubic meters of coal seam gas per year. And China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), parent of PetroChina, forecasts gas demand of up to 300 billion cubic meters in China in 2020.
PetroChina is the world's No. 2 oil and gas producer, and controls more than 60 percent of China's gas output.
