PERTH (miningweekly.com) – The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) this week said that it would not oppose the A$231-million sales agreement between Australia Pacific Liquefied Natural Gas (APLNG) and ASX-listed Origin.
The two parties in February struck an agreement under which APLNG, in which Origin holds a 37.5% interest, would acquire the Ironbark coal seam gas project, in Queensland.
Ironbark is an undeveloped coal seam gas permit held by Origin, located in the Surat basin. It has expected reserves of around 129 PJ of 2P reserves, which is approximately 0.34 per cent of total eastern Australian reserves.
The ACCC this week said that in reaching a decision on the transaction, it considered the effect of the acquisition on domestic gas supply and the level of competition between suppliers of domestic gas.
“We had regard to the relatively small size of the Ironbark project. We also considered the alternatives available to Origin to either sell Ironbark to someone else or develop the project itself,” ACCC commissioner Roger Featherston said.
“In our view, neither of these alternatives would lead to a significantly different outcome for domestic gas users from that of the sale of Ironbark to APLNG.”
The ACCC concluded that the proposed acquisition would be unlikely to substantially lessen competition in any domestic gas market.
“However, we have long voiced concerns about the challenges facing east coast domestic gas users and will continue to closely examine the acquisition of further gas reserves by major LNG producers and the likely impact on competition,” Featherston said.