Woodsides sells 10% Scarborough stake to LNG Japan

Woodside has sold a 10% non-operating participating interest in its Scarborough joint venture to LJ Scarborough, a jointly owned subsidiary of LNG Japan.

In August 2023, Woodside established a strategic relationship with LNG Japan, which, in addition to equity in the Scarborough joint venture, also included potential LNG offtake and collaboration on potential opportunities in new energy.

Read more: Woodside sells 10% stake in Scarborough to Japan LNG for $500m

Meg O’Neill, CEO of Woodside, described the sale as a significant milestone.

She added, “LNG Japan’s commitment to the Scarborough joint venture is a demonstration of the value our customers place on gas as a long-term source of energy as they navigate the energy transition.

Woodside currently holds a 90% interest in the Scarborough joint venture and will remain the operator. However, following the competition of the transaction with JERA, announced in February, Woodside’s interest will drop by 74.9%.

Read more: Woodside agrees to sell 15.1% Scarborough stake to JERA

The agreement’s cost comprises roughly $740m for the Scarborough partnership and compensates Woodside for JERA’s portion of the expenses accrued since the deal’s effective date of 1st January 2022.

Back in January, Woodside confirmed that the Scarborough Energy Project was 55% complete, with around 57km out of 433km, of pipework having been completed, at the end of the fourth quarter of 2023.

The Scarborough gas field will be developed through new offshore facilities connected by pipeline to a second LNG train (Pluto Train 2) at the existing Pluto LNG onshore facility.

The project will include the installation of a floating production unit with eight wells drilled in the initial phase and 13 wells drilled over the life of the Scarborough gas field. All wells will be tied back to a semi-submersible FPU moored in 950m of water close to the Scarborough gas field.