Tamar Petroleum reported this morning that it had signed a conditional agreement to buy 7.5% of the rights in the Tamar gas field from Noble Energy.
Under the agreement, Tamar Petroleum will pay cash for Noble Energy's stake through a $560 million par value series B bond offering on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, on terms at at an interest rate similar to its series A bond issued in July 2017. The total value of the deal is $800 million.
Tamar Petroleum will also allocate shares to Noble Energy amounting to 43.5% of the company. The shares will not give Noble Energy the right to appoint a director on its behalf and will not carry voting rights. Noble Energy will bear most of the deal costs.
The deal depends on the fulfilment of a number of conditions, among them approval by Tamar Petroleum's shareholders of the share allocation to Noble Energy, as well as regulatory approvals.
The gas agreement with the Israeli government obliges Noble Energy to sell part of its holding in the Tamar fieldsuch that by 2021 its holding wil not be more than 25%.
Noble Energy VP for Regional Affairs Bini Zomer said, "This is a significant step in fulfilling Noble Energy’s obligations under the Natural Gas Framework as well as another layer in building a natural gas market in Israel. Funds generated from the sale will be invested in financing development of the Leviathan Project, which will provide another source of natural gas for the Israeli market. This deal will also increase the number of investors in the market to further the goal of market diversification that was set in the Framework."
Tamar Petroleum, which was listed on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange in July 2017, is an independent oil and gas company without a controlling core. It set out with the acquisition of 9.25% of the Tamar reservoir from Delek Drilling. With the acquisition of a further 7.5% from Noble Energy's holdings, Tamar Petroleum will hold 16.75% of the Tamar and Dalit fields.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on January 30, 2018
© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2018