[2019-04-16] Timor-Leste takes control of the Greater Sunrise project

Source: Macauhub

An official delegation from Timor-Leste is signing a US$650 million purchase agreement in Singapore for two holdings that will give oil company Timor Gap a controlling stake in the Greater Sunrise consortium, according to official information.

The delegation, which will sign contracts with ConocoPhillips and Shell, is led by Xanana Gusmão, the government’s special oil and gas representative, and includes Finance Minister Hélder Lopes and Timor Gap chairman and chief executive officer, Francisco Monteiro, according to Portuguese news agency Lusa.

With the completion of the deal, agreed in 2018 with the two oil companies, Timor-Leste will take a controlling interest of 56.6% in the project’s consortium, which also includes Australian oil company, Woodside, as the operator, with 33.4% and Japan’s Osaka Gas, with the remaining 10%.

Monteiro said recently that Timor-Leste wants to avoid using the Oil Fund to finance capital costs of up to US$12 billion for the development of the pipeline project to Timor-Leste and processing on the south coast.

After the start of production, a financial return of US$28 billion is expected, “not to mention other economic benefits, such as jobs created if processing takes place in Timor-Leste,” said the chairman of Timor Gap.

The company’s accounts are based on the projection that Greater Sunrise holds reserves of 4.6 trillion cubic feet of gas and 226 million barrels of oil at a price of US$62.5 per barrel.