BP said in an emailed statement that it has entered into an agreement to dilute a 5 percent interest in the Browse project in Western Australia to GS Energy, with BP retaining a 39.33 percent working interest.
This transaction is conditional upon regulatory and joint venture approvals.
“The dilution reflects BP’s disciplined approach to portfolio management by bringing in a committed partner that complements the substantial work already undertaken to advance the Browse to North West Shelf (NWS) project as it progresses towards entry into front-end engineering and design as well as securing necessary environmental approvals,” the company said.
BP and its partners “continue to see long-term value in the project, including its role in supporting energy security in Australia and the region,” the company added.
BP has a 44.33 percent stake in the Bowse LNG project after it bought a 27 percent stake from UK-based LNG giant Shell in 2023.
This move by BP comes after Japan’s Inpex recently entered into a deal with PetroChina International to buy the latter’s 10.67 percent stake in the Browse LNG project.
$35 billion
Australian LNG player Woodside expects its Browse LNG project to cost A$48.7 billion ($35 billion).
The Australian firm has a 30.6 percent operating stake in the project, while Japan Australia LNG, a joint venture of Mitsubishi and Mitsui, owns a 14.4 percent stake.
Woodside and its partners lodged the project proposal in 2018 with a capital estimate of A$27.3 billion, while a CCS solution was subsequently added to enable a reduction of 53 million tonnes (MT) CO2e in GHG emissions, compared to the project’s 2019 Scope 1 emissions estimate.
The Browse to NWS project has a forecast production capacity of 11.4 million tonnes per annum (LNG, LPG, and domestic gas) and a peak condensate production rate of 50,000 barrels per day.
Natural gas from the Calliance, Torosa, and Brecknock fields would be delivered to the Karratha gas plant, part of the North West Shelf project, via an approximately 900-kilometer pipeline, connected to two floating production storage and offloading facilities.
