Quadrant Done

Wasnt sure if this would be a negative or a positive for Comet. On the negative Santos have to fund this and the acquisition team will have been been working on this as priority. It also shows Comet is not the first Santos cab off the rank although I believe the Quadrant Shareholders pushed their hand.

On the positive with Quadrant of of the way they are free to address the biggest factor that impacts their profitablity their idling Gladstone terminal. I hope it means more time to get Muhalo reserve upgrades through and also quantify how much sandstone gas we are actually sitting on.

The longer they wait the more they will have to pay as reserves tick up.

Ps: 2.1B USD around 2.9B AUD a pretty penny or two

Santos to buy Quadrant Energy for $2.9bn after Dorado oil discovery
By Cole Latimer

22 August 2018 — 5:25pm

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Oil giant Santos has agreed to buy West Australian-based Quadrant Energy for $US2.15 billion ($2.9 billion). The acquisition marks a turnaround for Santos, which only six months ago was itself a takeover target.
The announcement comes just weeks after Quadrant proved up the WA offshore Dorado well, which is being labelled as one of the most prospective oil discoveries in Australia in years.

From target to buyer: Santos is bulking up with a $2.9 billion acquisition.
Photo: Warren Hackshall
Santos will acquire 100 per cent of Quadrant for an upfront payment of $US2.15 billion ($2.9 billion) on a cash and debt free basis.
The acquisition will increase Santos’ proven and probable reserves by 220 million barrels of oil equivalent, a 26 per cent jump, and its annual production levels by around 32 per cent, or 19 million barrels of oil equivalent.
“This acquisition delivers increased ownership and operatorship of a high quality portfolio of low cost, long life convetional Western Australia natural gas assets which are well known to Santos, and importantly significantly strengthens Santos’ offshore operating capability,” Santos managing director Kevin Gallagher said.
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“The transaction lowers our 2018 forecast free cash flow breakeven oil price by a further $4 a barrel, and Quadrant’s stable cash flows provide increased certainty during the upcoming period of major growth project delivery.”
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The owners of Quadrant, Brookfield Business Partners and Macquarie Capital, said the time to sell was now following the Dorado discovery.
“Brookfield and Macquarie determined it to be the appropriate time to transition Quadrant to a long-term owner that is suitably equipped to take it through the next phase of development activities, including the assessment and development of the Dorado opportunity,” Brookfield said in a statement.
The acquisition will be funded through Santos’ existing $US1.5 billion cash resources and $US1.2 billion in new debt facilities.

The agreement also includes a contingent payment in relation to the Dorado discovery and a royalty over all future oil produced in the Bedout Basin tenements, off Western Australia’s shores.
Quadrant Energy also supplies around 20 per cent of all of Western Australia's gas.
At the time of Quadrant and its joint venture partner Carnarvon Petroleum’s announcement of Dorado, Credit Suisse’s director of Asia Pacific Markets, Saul Kavonic, said the discovery appeared to be “the real deal”.
“Announcements from small explorers like Carnarvon Petroleum often need to be taken with salt, management could trip over a gas BBQ in their backyard and hype it up as a gas find, but Dorado is more than just hype,” Mr Kavonic said.
The sale of Quadrant will have an effective date of 1 January 2018, and is expected to be completed in the fourth quarter of 2018.

Santos’ share price closed down 0.2 per cent on Wednesday at $6.27.