Otto Energy, the former operator of the Galoc field in the Philippines, has sold off its remaining stake in the producing project to fellow Aussie independent Nido Petroleum for US $106 million.
The completion of the sale of Otto’s interest to Nido will help it fund its plans to spud a deepwater wildcat in another Philippines exploration block, as well as further onshore exploration in east Africa’s Tanzania.
Otto said the final proceeds were received on 17 February, after the deal was first revealed last year, with the effective date of the transaction put at 1 July 2014. The cash will be used, once payment of the appropriate proposed capital return tax amount is made to the Australian government, to undertake the forward exploration programs at SC55 in the Philippines, and two onshore Tanzania licences.
The company’s planned farm-down of its SC55 acreage together with funding of $24.5 million from BHP Billiton, says Otto, positions it favourably for the drilling of the deepwater Hawkeye-1 wildcat in the frontier block.
Nido added that it now has 100% of the shares in Galoc Production Company WLL, and will, via its wholly-owned subsidiaries, Nido Production (Galoc) Pty Ltd and the Galoc Production Company WLL, hold a combined 55.88% working interest in the oil field in Service Contract 14C1.
- Nido last month also received approval from the Philippines Department of Energy for the transfer of 10% of state-owned PNOC-EC’s participating interest in deepwater licence SC 63 to Nido.