Australian independent Woodside Energy has agreed to sell its stakes in the Greater Sunrise fields offshore East Timor, which it operates, to state-owned Timor Gap for $200mn.
The transaction simplifies Woodside's portfolio, chief executive Liz Westcott said on 27 October. Sunrise is a high-quality resource but did not fit with the company's capital and management priorities, it said. The Perth-based firm is targeting transaction completion in the first half of 2027.
The Sunrise joint venture partners previously comprised Timor Gap with 56.56pc, operator Woodside with 33.44pc and Japanese utility Osaka Gas with 10pc. Osaka Gas also agreed to sell its 10pc stake to Timor Gap in September, meaning the state will now control the entirety of the fields.
A development plan for Sunrise has been slow to emerge. East Timor hopes for a locally-built LNG terminal to process the gas, which would necessitate significant engineering works to bridge a trench in the Timor Sea, while maritime border issues have also delayed the project located 450km northwest of Australia's Darwin city.
East Timor's revenues from oil and gas have slumped since the ending of production at the Bayu-Undan field on the maritime border with Australia, which were processed through the 3.7mn t/yr Darwin LNG terminal before ceasing in late 2023.
Sunrise's fields hold an estimated 5.3 trillion ft³ (150bn m³) of dry gas and 226mn bl of condensate.
