With Gulf of Thailand acquisition under its belt, Canadian player expands oil portfolio

Valeura Energy Asia, a subsidiary of Canada’s oil and gas company Valeura Energy, has wrapped up the acquisition of upstream oil producing assets from Mubadala Petroleum’s subsidiary, Busrakham Oil and Gas.

Back in December 2022, Valeura confirmed a sale and purchase agreement (SPA) with Mubadala Petroleum to acquire operated interests in three offshore licences in the Gulf of Thailand from its subsidiary, Busrakham Oil and Gas. At the time, the Canadian firm revealed that the purchase consideration for the acquisition was $10.4 million plus up to an additional $50 million, contingent upon certain upside benchmark oil price scenarios in 2022, 2023, or 2024.

In an update on Wednesday, 22 March 2023, Valeura confirmed the completion of – what it describes as – its transformative Gulf of Thailand acquisition. As a result, the company is now the holder of a 100 per cent operated interest in licence B5/27 containing the Jasmine and Ban Yen oil fields, a 90 per cent operated working interest in licence G11/48 containing the Nong Yao oil field, and a 70 per cent operated working interest in licence G1/48 containing the Manora oil field. 

Sean Guest, Valeura President and CEO, commented: “I am delighted to have closed this transaction and grateful to the many individuals involved throughout the acquisition process culminating in this milestone. I would also like to welcome our new staff to the Valeura organisation, and look forward to charging ahead together as the largest independent oil producer in Thailand.”

These oil fields, which have now been added to the firm’s portfolio, collectively currently produce approximately 21,200 bbls/d of oil, net to the interest acquired. Moreover, two of these oil fields – Jasmine and Ban Yen – have been developed through a total of six fixed topside facilities and a leased FPSO Jasmine Venture MV7. The Canadian player underlines that all net economic benefits accumulated from 1 September 2022 are included within the acquired entity.

“With our expanded asset base, we can now begin to realise synergies across our operations, unlocking even more value for our stakeholders, while remaining mindful of our primary focus on safe, reliable operations. At the same time, our growth ambitions remain at the core of our forward strategy. We intend to pursue the organic growth opportunities within our portfolio, as well as further inorganic opportunities in Southeast Asia,” added Guest.

Furthermore, the Canadian oil and gas firm has commissioned Netherland, Sewell & Associates to conduct a reserves and contingent resources evaluation for all of its Thailand assets effective 31 December 2022, and will publish results in due course.

Regarding Valeura’s recent activities, it is worth noting that the firm disclosed a share exchange agreement (SEA), enabling it to acquire the remaining minority interest in its special purpose vehicle subsidiary company, Valeura Energy Asia, which holds all of the company’s assets in Thailand.

In addition, Valeura took care of the modifications to the MT Jaka Tarub crude oil storage vessel, making the vessel compatible with the infrastructure of the Wassana field in the Gulf of Thailand and capable of tandem crude oil loading/offloading.