Tamarind eyes more Tui stake (New Zealand)

Tamarind Management has made a move to buy more stake in the Tui area oil fields offshore New Zealand after it had entered into an agreement with the operator AWE to buy its entire 57.5% interest in the area. 

Namely, AWE concluded its divestment program on Tuesday after agreeing to sell the Tui area oil fields to Tamarind.

Malaysia-based Tamarind, established in August 2014 with a strategy to build an upstream energy company, will pay AWE $1.5 million for all of the outstanding shares of AWE New Zealand Pty Ltd and AWE Taranaki Limited, which together own 57.5% of Tui.

The agreement is subject to approvals by Tui joint venture and the New Zealand government.

The partners in PMP 38158, where the Tui area is located, are New Zealand Oil & Gas with 27.5% interest and Pan Pacific Petroleum with 15% interest.

According to a statement by New Zealand Oil & Gas on Wednesday, Tamarind has now also made an offer for the company’s 27.5 percent interest in Tui.

New Zealand Oil & Gas chief executive, Andrew Jefferies, said: “We are currently reviewing the announced transaction and considering the offer we have received to determine whether our interests are best served by accepting the offer or continuing to participate in the asset through its decommissioning phase.”

The Tui Area oil fields comprise the Tui, Amokura and Pateke fields which are located approximately 50 kilometers off the coast of Taranaki, New Zealand. Production from each field is fed into the Tui gathering system and then into the FPSO vessel, the Umuroa.

Offshore Energy Today Staff