Ghana’s NPA, Korea Petroleum sign MoU
Hassan Tampuli and Son Joo-Suk exchanging documents
The Chief Executive of the National Petroleum Authority (NPA) of Ghana,Hassan Tampuli, and his counterpart at the Korean Petroleum Quality and Distribution Authority (K-Petro), Son Joo-Suk, have pledged their commitment to work together to promote quality petroleum products, while contributing to efforts to curb carbon emissions.
In this regard, K-Petro has agreed to assist the NPA with the needed support to improve mechanisms for promoting petroleum quality and distribution in the country.
Speaking through an interpreter at the signing ceremony of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) Son Joo-Suk, Chief Executive of K-Petro, said his outfit was very much committed to details in the document, and everything would be done to ensure the quality of petroleum products distributed to consumers were of the best quality.
“We are committed to contributing to climate change and this signing is another demonstration of our commitment,” he said.
“Moreover, as the world has adopted Paris agreement, I wish today’s MoU will also lead to global goal of reducing gas emission”
According to him, his outfit will cooperate further with NPA in interchanging petroleum resources and information technology to enhance the activities of both agencies.
On his part, Mr. Tampuli said improving the petroleum quality and distribution systems were critical to the operations in the downstream sector.
“Collaborating with K-Petro will ensure petroleum products consume by the public are of the highest quality” he said.
Energy Ministry armed to respond to IMANI Ghana’s claim of Ghana losing $30b oil find
Energy Minister, John-Peter Amewu
The Ministry of Energy is expected to hold a press conference tomorrow, Friday, 26th April, 2019, to respond to claims by IMANI-Ghana that the country would lose a colossal US$30 billion oil find to Norwegian oil firm Aker Energy, if government fails to act quickly.
The presser is intended to respond to IMANI Ghana’s threat of going to court, should government fail to respond to a letter it sent to the sector Ministry, seeking clarity over the Aker Energy petroleum agreement.
Early this year, Aker Energy announced the discovery of oil in the Pecan South-1A well in the Deepwater Tano Cape Three Points (DWT/CTP) block offshore Ghana.
The find, which is touted as the biggest oil find in Africa, is estimated at 450 million to 550 million barrels.
But speaking at a forum in Accra Thursday, 25th April, 2019, Vice President of IMANI-Ghana, Kofi Bentil argued strongly that the find being claimed by Aker Energy is without a legal basis.
Aker Energy acquired the 51% stake in an earlier well in the area found by another Norwegian company, Hess Oil.
Hess Oil operated under a Petroleum Agreement with the Government of Ghana signed in 2006, which granted the company seven years within which to undertake oil exploration in a given area, the Contract Area.
This Exploration Period ended in 2013.
Kofi Bentil argued by the laws governing oil exploration and production in Ghana that, any oil find made outside of the exploration period could not be claimed by the company that found it, saying, “It belongs to the state.”
He said, Aker Energy, after having inherited the well from Hess Oil at a time the exploration period had ended, was not permitted by law to continue any exploratory activities.
He warned that IMANI Ghana would be compelled to go to court to seek clarity on the matter if government failed.
IMANI fears Ghana may lose $30 billion oil find to Aker Energy
Vice President of IMANI-Ghana, Mr Kofi Bentil
Ghana’s Policy Think Thank, IMANI Ghana, has expressed fears that Ghana could lose about US$ 30billion oil find to a Norwegian oil firm Aker Energy if government fails to act quickly to protect the interest of the state.
Early in the year, Aker Energy announced the discovery of oil in the Pecan South-1A well in the Deepwater Tano Cape Three Points (DWT/CTP) block offshore Ghana.
The find which is touted as the biggest oil find in Africa is estimated at 450 million to 550 million barrels.
Speaking at a forum in Accra Thursday, 25th April, 2019 Vice-President of IMANI-Ghana, Kofi Bentil argued forcefully that the find is being claimed by Aker Energy without a legal basis.
Aker Energy acquired the 51% stake in an earlier well in the area found by another Norwegian company Hess Oil.
Hess Oil operated under a Petroleum Agreement with the government of Ghana signed in 2006 which granted the company seven years within which to undertake oil exploration in a given area, the Contract Area.
This Exploration Period ended in 2013.
Kofi Bentil argues by the laws governing oil exploration and production in Ghana, any oil find made outside of the exploration period cannot be claimed by the company that found it – it belongs to the state.
In fact, he said, Aker Energy, having inherited the well from Hess oil at a time the exploration period had ended, was not permitted by law to continue any exploratory activities.
They were only required to do appraisal work on the Pecan find made by its predecessor company – Hess Oil.
Why were they permitted to engage in exploration in flagrant violation of the laws? Kofi Bentil wondered.
Assuming that Aker Energy accidentally stumbled on a new well in the course of the appraisal, it was legally obligated to announce this to the government for a negotiation on who controls what stake.
Kofi Bentil said that has not happened in this case.
Instead, he said, the company has claimed the new wells as though they formed part of the stake acquired from Hess Oil.
He emphasized the new wells could not be said to be part of the original well because an assessment showed that there is no dynamic communication between the new wells and the existing one. Dynamic communication is the basis for determining whether an oil find is independent of an existing one.
Plan of Development
Kofi Bentil read copiously, documents suggesting that Aker Energy has submitted to the government its Plan Development in respect of the new wells.
By law, the Minister of Energy is expected to assess that Plan of Development (PoD) and either disagree or endorse it.
Where the minister fails to respond in 30 days, the proposals submitted by the company are deemed as accepted.
The IMANI Vice-President said by Friday, April 26, 2019, if the Energy Minister John Peter Amewu fails to respond – the Petroleum Commission has advised him to – the $30 billion oil find would become the sole property of Aker Energy.
He does not understand why the ministry appears to be lax while the country stands on the cusp of losing a resource that rightfully belongs to the people of Ghana.
Appropriation of working area
The two new oil wells are not the only resources Aker Energy is claiming ownership of.
According to Mr Bentil, in clear violation of the laws, the company has refused to relinquish the rest of the contract area back to the state.
In fact, the company has claimed the 30% relinquished by Hess before its stake was acquired by Aker Energy.
The company has actually indicated it will continue to explore for oil in the Deepwater Cape Three Point/Tano South area.
This is in spite of the fact that there is no petroleum agreement permitting it to continue conducting any exploration.
Kofi Bentil insists that having made a find and having conducted appraisal of the wells, the remaining parts of the Pecan field should have been relinquished.
Potential conflict of interest
IMANI is concerned that Aker Energy may be disregarding Ghana’s laws because it is politically connected.
One of the original partners of its predecessor company, Fueltrade Ghana Ltd., is owned by the Chief Executive of Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC), he said.
Kofi Bentil said if this interest still obtains, the position of Dr K.K. Sarpong as head of GNPC which is the government’s chief negotiator on oil matters, raises questions.
While maintaining that IMANI is not interested in making allegations and accusing people of wrongdoing, he insisted the government must protect the national interest by claiming its share of the newly discovered oil wells.
He is surprised that government did not pay the $140 million it was required to pay to retain a stake in the Pecan well.
“Ghana needs the money,” he said, “God knows we need it so government must act quickly and claim it.”
Tutu Agyare leaves Tullow today; Khama, Sangudi appointed
Tullow Ghana has announced the appointment of Sheila Khama and Genevieve Sangudi as Non-Executive Directors with effect from Friday, 26 April 2019 following the resignation of Mr Tutu Agyare as a Non-Executive Director.
Mr Agyare will officially resign after the company’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) today, Thursday, 25 April 2019. Mr Agyare joined Tullow in 2010 as a Non-Executive Director and has been a member of several Board committees, including chairing the Remuneration Committee for the past two years. “Both Sheila and Genevieve will stand for re-election to the Board at the 2020 AGM,” a statement said. Sheila Khama is a policy adviser on the mineral, oil and gas industries at the World Bank in Washington focusing on host government relations with commercial companies. She also represents the bank as an observer on the International Board of the EITI. Ms Khama took up her position at the World Bank in 2016 having worked in a similar role for three years at the African Development Bank. Earlier in her career, Shelia spent eight years with Anglo-American in Botswana as their Corporate Secretary before joining De Beers as their CEO in Botswana for five years until 2010. Sheila was educated in Botswana before obtaining an MBA from Edinburgh University. Upon appointment, Sheila will join the Environment, Health and Safety Committee. Genevieve Sangudi is a Managing Director for The Carlyle Group based in South Africa. She has over 15 years of investment experience in Africa in the healthcare, financial services, oil & gas, petrochemicals, agribusiness and telecommunications sectors. Ms Sangudi joined Carlyle in 2011 and played a lead role in launching Carlyle’s maiden sub-Saharan Africa fund, including fundraising, strategy, origination and execution. Prior to joining Carlyle, Genevieve was a Partner and Managing Director with Emerging Capital Partners where she established and managed the firm’s Nigeria operations. Genevieve started her career in business development at Procter & Gamble in Boston. Genevieve received an MBA from Columbia Business School, a Masters in International Affairs from Columbia University School of International and Public Affairs and a B.A. from Macalester College. Upon appointment, Genevieve will join the Remuneration and Audit Committees. Tullow ahead of the AGM also noted that the Board will be asking Tullow shareholders to approve the Group’s first dividend payment since 2014. “This 2018 final dividend and our new dividend policy, which is expected to deliver at least $100 million per year to shareholders, reflect the financial and operational progress that Tullow has made over the past few years. Oil production from our West African portfolio is currently running at 95,000 bopd after a short-term production issue in the first quarter and is due to grow in the second half of the year and beyond,” the statement noted.
Tullow Oil cuts 2019 output guidance
Tullow Oil downgraded its 2019 output guidance to 90,000-98,000 barrels of oil per day (bpd) due to problems at its Ghana fields and sees final go-aheads for its Uganda in the second half while its Kenya project timeline was “ambitious”.
“(Ghana) performance was below expectations due to gas compression constraints on Jubilee during February and a delay in completing the Enyenra-10 production well at the TEN field. Both issues have now been resolved,” Tullow said on Thursday.
It had previously expected to produce between 93,000 and 101,000 bpd.
“The ~3 percent reduction in 2019 net production guidance provides a headline, but should not concern investors in our view,” Barclays said in a note.
With much focus on Tullow’s three-well drilling programme offshore Guyana, this year is also crunch time for Tullow’s East African projects.
Final investment decisions for its Ugandan project had been planned around mid-year and Kenya by the end of the year, which Tullow called “an ambitious target” on Thursday.
The shipment of a first cargo of Kenyan oil to test the market, which was originally planned in the first half as well, is expected to sail in the third quarter, Tullow said.
In Uganda, a $208 million payment after selling a stake in its onshore fields to Total in a so-called farm-down deal was delayed last year because the country asked for more tax on the deal than expected.
“These discussions are expected to conclude shortly and will enable completion of the farm-down,” Tullow said.
It has reduced its debt from $3.1 billion at the end of 2018 to $3 billion at the end of March.
It has hedged 56,000 bpd this year at a floor price of $56.40 per barrel and 31,000 bpd at $58.68 a barrel for 2020.
Ghana to lose $7.2 billion over Aker Energy oil find – Minority Claims
Adam Mutawakilu, Ranking Member for Mines and Energy Committee in Parliament
The Minority in Parliament is raising red flags over the recent oil discovery by Aker Energy.
Aker Energy recently announced that its oil exploration in the Deepwater Cape Three Points block in Ghana had been successful.
The company explained that initial works show that its Pecan4A well in the block could be holding some 450 to 550 million barrels of oil.
This, the company said had paved the way for further works on other wells in the block as it completes the main well—the Pecan4A.
The Minority, however, fears Ghana could lose a whopping $7.2 billion from the recent discovery because the government and the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) have failed to clarify the ownership of the latest discovery.
“The Minority Caucus in Parliament has learnt with shock, certain developments relating to the recent oil discovery in the Deepwater Tano Cape Three Point (DWT/CTP) Block which is set to lead to the loss of a whopping $7.2 billion to the State.On 14th February 2019, the Ministry of Finance (MoF) announced what it described as the biggest oil find in Africa, of 450 – 550 million barrels with potential reserves of nearly 1 billion barrels of oil equivalent. A find which is estimated to be at least $30 billion at today’s crude oil price of $65 per barrel.
“The Minority Caucus is extremely concerned that the Government of Ghana (GoG), and the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation have failed to clarify the ownership of this latest discovery, and appears to be treating it as part of the original Hess discovery.”
Concerns on Recent Oil Discovery
The Minority Caucus in Parliament has learnt with shock, certain developments relating to the recent oil discovery in the Deepwater Tano Cape Three Point (DWT/CTP) Block which is set to lead to the loss of a whopping $7.2 billion to the State.
On 14th February 2019, the Ministry of Finance (MoF) announced what it described as the biggest oil find in Africa, of 450 – 550 million barrels with potential reserves of nearly 1 billion barrels of oil equivalent. A find which is estimated to be at least $30 billion at today’s crude oil price of $65 per barrel.
The Minority Caucus is extremely concerned that the Government of Ghana (GoG), and the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation have failed to clarify the ownership of this latest discovery, and appears to be treating it as part of the original Hess discovery.
Clarity is crucial in this matter because a new Petroleum Agreement (PA) for any new Exploration leading to a new discovery will give the State much enhanced fiscal terms, including at least a 10% Royalty for GoG, plus a minimum of 15% Carried Interest as stipulated by Law; whereas the existing Hess/Aker Petroleum Agreement gives Ghana 4% in Royalty, and 10% Carried Interest, representing a minimum difference of 11% in oil production and revenue that would have accrued to the State.
Background
On 8th February 2006, the Republic of Ghana and the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) on one hand, and Hess Exploration Ghana Limited (HESS) on the other, entered into a Petroleum Agreement (PA) in respect of the Deepwater Tano Cape Three Point (DWT/CTP) petroleum Block which was subsequently ratified by Parliament that same year, with a shareholding structure of 90% for Hess, and 10% for GNPC.
The Exploration period for the DWT/CTP Block was seven (7) years. As such the Exploration License expired on 18th July 2013. During the Exploration period, the Operator (Hess) had acquired over 500 Sq. Km of Seismic data drilled eight (8) Exploratory Wells and made seven (7) successive discoveries.
Following the high Exploration success rate, Hess organized a Data-Room to farm-down on it 90% interest in the Block, thus changing the shareholding structure to Hess – 50%, LUKOIL – 38%, GNPC – 10%, and Fueltrade – 2%.
In 2018, Aker Energy Ghana Limited (Aker) bought Hess’ interest in the DWT/CTP Block. And since Aker took over from Hess in 2018, it has successfully appraised the Pecan 4A well which was discovered in 2012 under President Mahama’s Government.
Matters of Fact
It is the understanding of the Minority that the Exploration period in the Petroleum Agreement (PA) granted Hess lapsed in 2013, and as such any discovery found after such an Exploration period, by Law cannot be deemed part of the existing discoveries unless they are of the same geological structure and have dynamic communication with the existing discoveries.
As such it is our considered opinion therefore that these latest oil discoveries fall outside the original Hess Petroleum Agreement. In such a circumstance, to cover these new discoveries the Government of Ghana has an obligation under Act 919 to ensure the immediate signing of a new Petroleum Agreement in order to protect and preserve the country’s interest.
Conservative estimates show that Ghana stands to gain a minimum of $9 billion if this new Petroleum Agreement were to be entered. The existing arrangement gives Ghana only $4.2 billion which would be detrimental to the country’s interest, given its precarious financial position and the urgent need for resources to finance developmental agenda.
Plan of Development (PoD)
Also, the Minority Caucus in Parliament have been reliably informed of serious Technical, Legal, and Commercial issues on the Plan of Development (PoD) submitted by Aker Energy, including but not limited to the following:
(a) That Aker Energy plans to deploy new untested but innovative solutions for the production of crude oil from the Pecan Field. These untested technologies come with significant operational risks, and that appropriate measures would be required to mitigate them.
(b) That Aker proposes that the implementation of the PoD is made conditional. For example, that “the subsequent developments of petroleum resources within the Development and Production Area shall be subject to the same fiscal terms as for the DWT/CTP Pecan field development.”
(c) That Aker intends to use the Pecan field as the anchor for field development. Which means all additional exploration and development will be done on the back of Pecan, and this will have adverse implications on the Government take from the Pecan discovery.
The Minority is studying the concerns raised at GNPC and Petroleum Commission (PC) Boards and will come out with a statement in a couple of days.
It is also the understanding of the Minority that the government is entertaining a discussion with Aker Energy on changing the terms of the AGM Petroleum’s South Deepwater Tano (SDWT) Block which could lead to a reduction of government’s equity, royalties, and other taxes.
Minority’s Demands
Considering the above, the Minority Caucus in Parliament demand that the Ministry of Energy (MoE), as a matter of urgency;
– Clarifies the ownership position in relation to these new oil discoveries
– Take steps to ensure the drafting and signing of a new Petroleum Agreement as demanded by Act 919 for these new discoveries
– Apprise Parliament of the relevant information relating to these discoveries, including but not limited to all the technical, legal, and commercial details
Additionally, the Minority demand that the Ministry of Energy confirm if Government of Ghana, directly or indirectly through the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation, exercised the option to acquire the 10% equity interest that was negotiated and agreed with Hess as one of the conditions for the Lukoil farm-in; and which Parliament approved such spend in GNPC’s budget.
Lastly, and with regards to the South Deepwater Tano (SDWT) Block; the Minority Caucus demand that the Government of Ghana (GoG) needs to confirm if Aker has approached the GoG to consider reducing government’s interest from the current potential 49% that GoG and GNPC/GNPC Explorco holds in the Block.
Caution to Government
The Minority would want to put to government that “the situation of pronouncing a discovery under an existing Petroleum Agreement whose Exploration period has expired violates the terms of the Agreement and the laws of the country.” Hence any natural resources discovered or secured under these circumstances have to be forfeited to the State.
The Minority puts Nana Akuffo Addo’s Government on notice that “we would resist these attempts by Government to connive with any oil company to deprive the good people of Ghana the benefits of their natural resources, in accordance with the Laws of Ghana.”
We further put Nana Akuffo Addo’s government on notice that “any shortchanging of Ghana’s entitlements will be revisited by all means possible under the laws of Ghana.”
In conclusion, the Minority Caucus in Parliament expects the Nana Akuffo Addo led the government to address all the issues raised to ensure that Ghana is not shortchanged in its entitlements.
SIGNED:
Hon. Adam Mutawakilu (MP)
Ranking Member for Mines and Energy Committee in Parliament
Statement: Inability of NEDCO to utilize compact funds for financial and operational turnaround project.
The Ministry of Energy has noted with concern NEDCo’s inability to access and utilize the USD 54,191,650.00 allocated Compact funds for NEDCo Financial and Operational Turnaround (NFOT) Project. The Ministry therefore wishes to use this press statement to provide the public, media and key stakeholders in the Energy Sector with the facts of the situation.
Primarily, staff groups from NEDCo stood against the Management Contract as a form of Private Sector Participation in the company.
Several meetings were held between the Ministry of Energy, Board members and Management of NEDCo as well as senior staff members of NEDCo in the bid to address issues and secure the funds for the infrastructure projects in NEDCo’s area of operation.
Owing to the stance of NEDCo, it got to the point that government had to intervene to ensure that the funds were secured.
Government, just like in the case of the renegotiation of the terms of the PSP in ECG, gave the following assurances to NEDCo:
There would be no job losses as a result of the implementation of the NFOT project;
There would be no replacement of the existing Management team; nobody would be made worse off; The terms of the Management Contract will be two years instead of five years; NEDCo will participate actively in the crafting of the Management Contract to ensure that, NEDCo’s interests are catered for in the implementation; and Any issues or challenges that staff may have with the NFOT project should be channelled to the Transaction Advisor and if there was a stalemate on any matter, same should be brought to the attention of Government for immediate redress.
Despite all the efforts made by Government to secure the Compact Funds for NEDCo, the staff rejected the Management Contract mainly on the grounds that it involved the vesting of corporate-wide operational control in the Management Contract and the other related issues contained in the staff groups’ position on the NFOT Project.
The Ministry also noted that whilst NEDCo’s management was communicating Government’s assurance to NEDCo in a meeting, some staff wearing red arm and head bands went to the meeting grounds with placards indicating their support for the stance adopted by their leaders.
LOSS OF COMPACT FUNDS FOR NEDCO’S FINANCIAL AND OPERATIONAL TURNAROUND (NFOT)
During a review meeting to define the current status of implementation of projects and to re-strategize towards effective utilization of Compact Funds on the projects that must be undertaken to meet the Compact’s goal and fulfil its objectives, the funds meant for NEDCo’s Financial and Operational Turnaround Project had to be reallocated to the construction of a Bulk Supply Point (BSP) at Kasoa.
CONCLUSION
With the grant (Compact Funds) reallocated to another project, NEDCo would have to seek new funds either by borrowing or other financial arrangements in order to be able to implement projects intended to have been undertaken with the Compact Funds. Also, the failure to utilize the Compact Funds will negatively affect people in NEDCo’s catchment area.
NANA KOFI OPPONG-DAMOAH
HEAD, COMMUNICATIONS AND PUBLIC AFFAIRS UNIT
Oxy in swoop for Anadarko; Says its bid superior to Chevron’s
The U.S. oil firm Occidental Petroleum has entered a race with Chevron to buy Anadarko Petroleum. Oxy on Wednesday said the 50-50 cash and stock transaction was valued at $57 billion.
The news follows last week’s Chevron’s bid to buy Anadarko, also in stock-cash combination, valued at $50 billion.
Occidental Petroleum on Wednesday said it had delivered a letter to the Board of Directors of Anadarko Petroleum Corporation “setting forth the terms of a superior proposal by Occidental to acquire Anadarko for $76.00 per share, in which Anadarko shareholders would receive $38.00 in cash and 0.6094 shares of Occidental common stock for each share of Anadarko common stock.”
“Occidental’s proposal represents a premium of approximately 20% to the value of Anadarko’s pending transaction as of April 23, 2019,” Oxy said.
“Occidental believes its proposal is superior both financially and strategically for Anadarko’s shareholders, creating a global energy leader with the scale and geographic diversification to drive growth and deliver compelling value and returns to the shareholders of both companies.”
“The combined company will be uniquely positioned to leverage Occidental’s demonstrated operational and technical expertise, producing greater anticipated synergies than Anadarko’s pending transaction. The 50-50 cash and stock transaction is valued at $57 billion, based on Occidental’s closing price on April 23, 2019, including the assumption of net debt and book value of non-controlling interest.”
As for the Chevron bid revealed on April 12, based on Chevron’s closing price on April 11, 2019, Anadarko shareholders would receive 0.3869 shares of Chevron and $16.25 in cash for each Anadarko share.
The Chevron-Anadarko transaction has been approved by the Boards of Directors of both companies and is subject to Anadarko shareholder approval. It is also subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.
Worth noting, Oxy has also revealed it has since March made three acquisition proposals to Anadarko, which, Oxy says, offered Anadarko’s “shareholders a significant immediate premium as well as participation in value creation post-closing.” (See full letter sent to Anadarko below.)
“We have been focused on Anadarko for several years because we have long believed that we are ideally positioned to generate compelling value from a combination with them.”
Vicki Hollub, President and Chief Executive Officer of Occidental: “Occidental is a leader in using technological innovation to create value, and we will deploy our expertise to enhance the performance and productivity of Anadarko’s assets not only in the Permian but globally.”
“Occidental and Anadarko have a highly complementary asset portfolio, providing us with a unique opportunity to realize significant operating, cost, and capital allocation synergies and achieve near-term cash flow accretion.”
The CEO added: “We have been focused on Anadarko for several years because we have long believed that we are ideally positioned to generate compelling value from a combination with them. We look forward to engaging immediately with Anadarko’s Board and stakeholders to deliver this superior transaction.”
Oxy says the proposed Anadarko transaction would boost its Occidental’s position as the largest producer in the Permian with 533 thousand Boe/d of production.
“Adding to Occidental’s existing, cash flow generating international and chemicals portfolio, Anadarko’s industry-leading DJ Basin operations combined with its cash flow generating assets in the Gulf of Mexico, Algeria and Ghana, provide complementary growth and enhanced stability. The combined company’s asset base is expected to supply low-cost development opportunities to fuel high return growth for years to come,” Oxy said.
Furthermore, Oxy says it has identified $3.5 billion in annual free cash flow improvements that are expected to be fully achieved by 2021, comprised of $2 billion in annual pre-tax run-rate cost synergies, and $1.5 billion of capital reduction, with the potential for further upside.
The annual capital reduction would be delivered in the first year and result in moderating near-term production growth from 10% to 5% on a combined basis, OXY said.
See below Oxy’s full Letter to Anadarko Board
“Dear Members of the Anadarko Board of Directors:
As you know Occidental has long admired Anadarko, and we believe that a combination of our two companies would create a global energy leader with a winning shareholder value proposition. Combining our highly complementary global asset portfolios would generate significant cost and capital synergies, attractive organic growth and a stable, sustainable and growing dividend. The resulting diverse but focused company will be a world leader in shale development and enhanced oil recovery.
Since late March, Occidental has made three acquisition proposals to Anadarko that offered your shareholders a significant immediate premium as well as participation in value creation post closing.
Each was significantly higher than the $65 per share transaction you announced on April 12. Our most recent proposal, conveyed in writing on the morning of April 11, followed by a merger agreement we were prepared to sign, was for $76 per share, comprised of 40% cash and 60% stock. We were surprised and disappointed that your Board did not engage with us on that proposal, or our proposal of April 8, even though both were significantly higher than the price you accepted from Chevron.
The transaction you announced with Chevron indicates that the Anadarko Board believes that $65 per share is a fair price for your shareholders. Occidental is hereby proposing to acquire Anadarko for $76 per share, comprised of $38 in cash and 0.6094 shares of Occidental common stock per Anadarko share.
Our proposal represents a premium of approximately 20% to the $63.46 per share value of Chevron’s offer as of yesterday’s close. The equity component also provides your shareholders an opportunity to continue to participate in the value creation of this exciting combination.
Our Board of Directors has unanimously approved our proposal, and we have executed financing commitments with BofA Merrill Lynch and Citi for the cash portion of our proposal. Our merger agreement will not contain any financing condition, and we do not anticipate any delay to completing the regulatory approval process. We would expect to seek the approval of the shareholders of both companies and close a transaction in the second half of 2019.
It is unfortunate that Anadarko agreed to pay a break up fee of $1 billion, representing approximately $2 per share, without even picking up the phone to speak to us after we made two proposals during the week of April 8 that were at a significantly higher value to the transaction you were apparently negotiating with Chevron.
“We noted to you on April 8 that our due diligence is complete. As you are aware, our financial advisors are BofA Merrill Lynch and Citi, and our legal advisors are Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP, and we and they are available to discuss any aspect of our proposal. We and our advisors have reviewed your merger agreement with Chevron.
“We are separately sending to you and your legal advisors a form of merger agreement on that basis which we would be prepared to enter into, subject to our agreeing to the disclosure schedules to be attached, together with a copy of our financing commitment letter.
“We sincerely hope that you will act now to secure this compelling opportunity for your shareholders without further delay. Our proposal is superior for your shareholders, employees and other stakeholders, and we look forward to concluding the requisite formalities and executing an agreement expeditiously.”
Source: Offshoreenergytoday.com
Shell strikes oil at Blacktip prospect in Gulf of Mexico
Oil major Shell has made a significant oil discovery at the Blacktip prospect in the deep water U.S. Gulf of Mexico.
Shell said on Wednesday that evaluation is ongoing and appraisal planning is underway to further delineate the discovery and define development options.
“Blacktip is Shell’s second material discovery in the Perdido Corridor and is part of a continuing exploration strategy to add competitive deep water options to extend our heartlands,” said Andy Brown, Upstream Director for Royal Dutch Shell.
Blacktip is a Wilcox discovery in the Perdido thrust belt and was discovered in the Alaminos Canyon Block 380, approximately 30 miles from the Perdido platform and Whale discovery. The find presents the opportunity to augment existing production in the Perdido area where Shell’s Great White, Silvertip and Tobago fields are already producing.
Drilling at the initial Blacktip well is still underway and has to date encountered more than 400 feet net oil pay with good reservoir and fluid characteristics. The well is currently being deepened to further assess the structure’s potential.
Blacktip is operated by Shell (52.375%) and co-owned by Chevron (20%), Equinor (19.125%), and Repsol (8.5%).
This discovery in a Shell heartland adds to the company’s Paleogene exploration success in the Perdido area. Through exploration, Shell has added more than one billion barrels of oil equivalent in the last decade in the Gulf of Mexico. The company’s global deep-water production is on track to exceed 900,000 boe per day by 2020, from already discovered, established areas.
The Blacktip discovery is located approximately 250-miles (400-kilometers) south of Houston in approximately 6200-feet (1900-meters) of water.
In a separate statement on Wednesday, Equinor’s Bjørn Inge Braathen, senior vice president for exploration in North America, said: “We are very pleased with this discovery which confirms the potential in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico and underpins Equinor’s strategy to exploit prolific basins and deepen in core areas.”
Braathen added: “We await further results from the well and look forward to continue the collaboration with the operator and co-venturers to assess the full potential of the discovery and evaluate options for development.”
Equinor is planning to drill the Monument Paleogene prospect in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico in 2019.
Source: Offshoreenergytoday.com
Eni books higher profit, eyes production growth in 2019
Italian oil company Eni saw an increase in its first quarter 2019 net profit when compared to the last year’s performance. In 2019, Eni expects its production to grow fueled by ramp-up at new fields.
Eni’s adjusted operating profit in 1Q 2019 was €2.35 billion, slightly down from the profit of €2.38 billion in the corresponding period of 2018.
Eni’s net profit for the first quarter 2019 was €1.09 billion ($1.2 billion) compared to €946 million ($1.06 billion) in the same period in 2018, up by 15%.
The company’s adjusted net profit in the first quarter 2019 grew to €992 million from €978 million in the same period last year.
Hydrocarbon production of the first quarter 2019 was 1.83 million boe/d; down by 1.3% net of price and portfolio effects.
Eni said that this quarter-on-quarter change was affected by the termination of the Intisar production contract in Libya from the third quarter of 2018 and mature fields decline. These negative effects were almost completely offset by strong organic production increases due to the ramp-up of the Zohr field and of the projects started in 2018 (overall 200 kboe/d).
Commenting on the results, Claudio Descalzi, CEO of Eni, remarked: “I am very pleased of the excellent industrial and financial performance delivered by Eni in IQ 2019. Particularly, in light of a substantially unchanged market scenario, the E&P business has improved its operating profit by 25% compared to the first quarter of 2018, confirming our expectations of the business growing cash generation for the full year.”
The oil company expects its production growth rate in 2019 to be at 2.5% y-o-y, under a Brent price forecast of 62 $/bbl.
According to Eni, this growth will be fueled by continuing production ramp-up at fields started in 2018, increases at the Zohr and Kashagan fields, as well as the planned 2019 start-ups including the Area 1 oil project offshore Mexico, the Baltim SW in Egypt, the North Berkine in Algeria and Trestakk project in Norway.
A yearly contribution from start-ups and ramp-ups is expected to reach approximately 250 kboe/d. Production growth vs. 2018 will accelerate from the third quarter of 2019, after the maintenance activities concentrated in the second quarter of 2019, which includes Kashagan and Goliat fields.
Source: Offshoreenergytoday.com
Ghana, Burkina Faso, others to benefit from World Bank’s $200m funding to boost power supply
The Board of the World Bank Group has approved the Regional Off-Grid Electrification Project (ROGEP) for Ghana and 18 other countries to increase electricity access of households.
The project includes $150 million in the form of credit and grant from the International Development Association (IDA) and $74.7 million contingent recovery grant from the Clean Technology Fund to help the West African Development Bank and ECOWAS’ Center for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency expand off-grid access to electricity for populations in 19 countries in West Africa and the Sahel region.
The countries include Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Cote d’Ivoire, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Togo.
The overall objective of ROGEP is to increase electricity access of households, businesses, and public institutions using modern stand-alone solar systems through a harmonized regional approach. The project is expected to benefit about 1.7 million people currently living without electricity connection or with unreliable supply, as well as businesses and public institutions who will use modern stand-alone solar systems to improve their living standards and economic activities.
“So far, only 3 percent of households in West Africa and the Sahel are served by stand-alone solar home systems, and 208 million people in the sub-region do not have access to electricity. The project seeks to assist regional policy makers to address barriers to create a regional market for stand-alone solar systems, which is essential to reduce energy poverty in the region, and entrepreneurs to take opportunities in this market through development of scalable business solutions,” said Rachid Benmessaoud, Coordinating Director for Regional Integration in West Africa.
“The new project will help adopt regional standards and regulations to establish a regional market with harmonized policies that will attract larger market players for the benefit of all participating countries.”
Although stand-alone solar systems have a large market potential in West Africa and the Sahel, investments in off-grid renewable energy have lagged behind in the sub-region. The new project maximizes finance for development by crowding in private investments to deploy innovative technologies. By developing a regional market, it will help better address the important growth in demand for reliable electricity and will help create jobs.
The new project is aligned with the World Bank Group’s twin goals of poverty reduction and shared prosperity and the Africa Climate Business Plan. Furthermore, it will implement a pilot to test business models to electrify schools and health clinics critical for the Human Capital Project in West Africa.
Thirteen Western Region towns to experience four days’ power outage
Residents of Shama Ituma, Daboase, Essaman, Supom Dunkwa, Sekyere Krobo, Aboso, Beposo, Anlo Beach,and other surrounding areas in the Western Region who want to enjoy electricity from the national grid should rather make alternative arrangements to have power supply between 8am and 4pm from Saturday, 27th April to Tuesday, 30th April, 2019.
This is because the Ghana Grid Company (GRIDCo) had requested the Power Distribution Services (PDS) to curtail power to the aforementioned towns to enable it continue with the construction of the Aboadze-Prestea-Kumasi 330kV Transmission Line.
Contained in a release, PDS expressed regret of any inconvenience that would arise as a result of the power outage.
Poor Electricity Supply Affecting Our Operations-GWCL Boss
Poor supply of electricity is seriously affecting the operations of the Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL), the Managing Director of the company has said.
According to Dr. Clifford Abdallah Braimah, the situation might compel GWCL to cut off partnership with its power supply partners.
He said the company had sought to develop alternative sources of generating power to ensure stable supply of electricity to its water treatment plants across the country to ensure frequent distribution of water to consumers.
He said due to the poor supply of electricity from PDS, GRIDCo, Northern Electricity Distribution Company (NEDCo) amongst others, the company had commissioned feasibility study for the construction of Hydro Electric Power systems at Mampong, Weija, Barekese and the results were very positive.
Dr Braimah made this known on Tuesday when he visited one of the company’s water treatment plants at Dalun in the Kumbungu District in the northern region, as part of his visit to assess the activities of the company.
He said reports on the feasibility study would soon be sent to government for approval in order to kick start the Hydro Electric Power system projects.
Dr Braimah said the company would soon bring some technocrats from Czech Republic to assess and plant a horizontal turbine system in Dalun to help generate electricity to support GWCL activities in the northern region.
He said poor electricity supply from PDS had damaged some of the company’s machines at various water treatment plants citing the recent damage of some Auto-transfomers at Dalun, which interrupted regular water supply to consumers.
He said the water treatment plant at Dalun for over 16 hours on Monday had not been able to supply water to its customers due to lack of electricity which affected the company’s activities and its consumers greatly.
” NEDCo, the electricity supply line that is supposed to give us enough power, has connected a lot of communities to that line resulting in the low distribution of water to Tamale and its surroundings” he said.
Mr Braimah also expressed regret on the irresponsible sand winning activities carried out along the river beds of the White Volta at Nawuni, the company’s source of raw water intake for the Dalun water treatment plant, leading to its contamination.
He said these irresponsible activities would lead to higher cost in water treatment as well as increase in water tariffs and therefore called on the traditional authorities and stakeholders within the area to help stop the sand winning activities.
He advised consumers not to always be quick to blame GWCL whenever there was interruption in water supply since most times it’s not the company’s fault and assured that the company would continue to do its best to serve its customers.
Exxon Inks Large LNG Deal Despite China/US Trade Row
Exxon has inked a contract with Chinese Zhejiang Energy for the supply of 1 million tons of liquefied natural gas annually, the supermajor said, adding the Chinese company will build a new import terminal for the shipments.
Reuters reports that the terminal Zhejiang Energy will build will have a capacity to hold 3 million tons of LNG with a US$1.34 billion price tag. Sinopec, China’s largest refiner, will be partner of Zhejiang in the project.
The deal is significant first because it may go a certain way towards quenching concern that the trade dispute between Washington and Beijing would affect LNG trade just as China’s demand for the superchilled fuel is rising steadily.
However, as one analyst told Reuters, the deal is not part of the bilateral negotiations that have recently raised hopes that the trade war saga could end in a mutually beneficial deal.
“The gas supplies to the Zhejiang firm will come from Exxon’s portfolio production outside the U.S.,” Chen Zhu said, adding that the terminal will begin operations sometime in 2022 or 2023. The analyst noted that Exxon already has two LNG supply deals with Chinese companies, and not just any companies: the supermajor will supply LNG to Sinopec and CNPC.
Secondly, it is a long-term deal—20 years—which is even better news for other U.S. companies betting on LNG: long-term supply commitments are what they all need to secure the funding needed for the construction of the liquefaction facilities, which normally cost billions of dollars.
Exxon is one of the largest global players in liquefied natural gas, holding stakes in LNG projects that combined have a total capacity of some 65 million tons of the fuel annually. This includes the Papua New Guinea LNG project where Exxon is the majority partner and which specifically targets the Asian market—the driver of future global LNG demand.
Source: Oilprice.com