PTTEP Buys Additional Stake in Apico
Thai state-owned PTT Exploration & Production (PTTEP) July 31 said it has bought addition equity in privately-owned Apico from Coastal Energy Company.
PTTEP HK Holding, a subsidiary of PTTEP, has signed a share purchase agreement (SPA) to acquire 39% stake in Apico for about $74mn. The deal will increase PTTEP’s share in Apico to 72.8%.
Apico holds 35% participating interest in Sinphuhorm project of which PTTEP is the operator with 55% participating interest and the US major ExxonMobil holds the remaining 10% participating interest. Furthermore, Apico also holds 100% participating interest in Block L15/43 and Block L27/43, in the northeastern region of Thailand.
The transaction is expected to complete within Q3 2019 after which PTTEP’s stake in Sinphuhorm project will, directly and indirectly, increase to a total of 80.48%, it said. Earlier this year, PTTEP acquired 33.8% stake in Apico from Tatex Thailand and Tatex Thailand II for some $64mn.
“This acquisition of additional interest in Apico underlines PTTEP’s growth strategy in expanding investment in Thailand. The deal will generate return on investment to PTTEP while also driving further development of Sinphuhorm project to support electricity generation in northeast of Thailand,” CEO Phongsthorn Thavisin said.
The Sinphuhorm project covers Blocks EU1 and E5N in Udon Thani and Khon Kaen provinces. In the first half of 2019, the project’s average gas sales were about 88mn ft3/day. It is the main supply for the Nam Phong Power Plant in Khon Kaen.