Woodside Petroleum’s proposed $3.75billion acquisition of Apache’s interest in three projects will not be opposed by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC).
The company is looking to acquire interests in the Wheatstone, Balnaves and Kitimat Projects.
The first and second project are located in the Northern Carnarvon Basin, offshore Western Australia, while the Kitimat Project is located in British Columbia, Canada.
ACCC Chairman Rod Sims said: “Following the proposed acquisition, Woodside would continue to face strong competition from other suppliers in the market, including Apache, Chevron, and Santos.
“Apache will continue to supply gas to the market through its interests in the Macedon, Varanus Island, and Devil Creek Projects.
“As a result, Apache will remain a larger supplier of domestic gas in WA than Woodside following the proposed acquisition.
“Apache’s minority interest in domestic gas produced by the Wheatstone Project will represent only a small fraction of the total gas to be supplied to WA, when it comes online in around 2018.
“The acquisition will not change the structure of the market in a material way, with Woodside’s share of the total market changing by less than 5%.”
In Australia, Woodside and Apache overlap in the wholesale supply of natural gas to the domestic market in Western Australia.
The ACC determined that, in this instance, the proposed acquisition would be unlikely to raise significant competition concerns, the ACCC noted worries expressed by the market about the effects of any further industry consolidation.
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