Latest news with #XRG
Arabian Post
a day ago
- Business
- Arabian Post
Abu Dhabi Consortium Secures Exclusive Santos Due‑Diligence Window
Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Santos has granted a six‑week exclusive due‑diligence period to a consortium led by Abu Dhabi's National Oil Company, signalling serious progress towards its A$36.5 billion takeover proposal. The consortium, comprising ADNOC's investment arm XRG, Abu Dhabi Development Holding Company and private equity investor Carlyle, has placed an all‑cash offer of A$8.89 per share—representing a roughly 28 per cent premium on Santos's previous closing price. Santos's board is prepared to endorse the deal, pending satisfactory outcomes from due diligence, no better competing bids and approval by an independent fairness expert. ADVERTISEMENT Should the offer proceed, it would mark Australia's largest-ever all‑cash corporate takeover and rank among the top three transactions nationally—holding an enterprise value near A$36.4 billion. The acquisition targets Santos's LNG assets, including Australia's Gladstone and Darwin facilities, plus substantial interests in Papua New Guinea's LNG project and the forthcoming Papua LNG development. XRG aims to build an integrated gas and LNG portfolio capable of delivering 20–25 million tonnes annually by 2035. Adhering to regulatory requirements, the consortium has signed confidentiality agreements and secured exclusive negotiating rights for this due‑diligence phase. Santos's management is forecasting a binding scheme implementation agreement before enabling a shareholder vote needing at least 75 per cent support, as per Australian scheme‑of‑arrangement rules. Shareholder approval will depend on a legal and financial assessment of the offer's fairness. While the consortium has pledged to maintain Santos's Adelaide headquarters, preserve local employment, and continue momentum on major projects like the Barossa LNG development and Moomba carbon‑capture initiative, significant regulatory scrutiny lies ahead. National oversight will involve multiple bodies: Australia's Foreign Investment Review Board, ACCC, ASIC, and National Offshore Petroleum Titles Administrator; Papua New Guinea's Securities and Competition commissions; and the US Committee on Foreign Investment due to Santos's cross-border interests. Analysts caution that the central risk is FIRB rejection, given Santos's control over critical gas infrastructure. Potential remedies, like spinning off assets, may invite legal and decommissioning complexities. South Australian state officials, including Premier Peter Malinauskas and Energy Minister Tom Koutsantonis, have highlighted the importance of protecting domestic jobs, the company's base, and energy security—leveraging recent legislative powers to oversee licence transfers. The political backdrop complicates matters, with Treasurer Jim Chalmers in caretaker mode ahead of a potential election. His decision will pivot on FIRB advice and the national interest implications. Santos has endured pressures in recent years, including a near‑16 per cent drop in annual profit and a 41 per cent dividend cut in 2024. It also abandoned merger negotiations with Woodside that would have created an A$80 billion energy entity. The consortium's revised offer follows an initial A$8.00 bid in March, raised to A$8.60 later that month, and now stands at A$8.89—reflecting sustained negotiations and valuation uplifts. Should the agreement proceed, final receipt of regulatory and shareholder clearances could extend into early 2026. This transaction underscores ADNOC's growing appetite for strategic LNG assets in the Asia‑Pacific region and exemplifies broader Middle Eastern investment trends in global energy infrastructure. The outcome will influence the balance of power in Australia's evolving LNG market and set significant precedents for future foreign investment decisions.
Zawya
a day ago
- Business
- Zawya
Santos grants six weeks exclusive due diligence to ADNOC-led consortium
Australia's Santos said on Friday it had granted exclusive due diligence for a period of six weeks to an international consortium led by Abu Dhabi's National Oil Company (ADNOC), which had offered $18.7 billion for the gas producer. ADNOC's investment arm XRG, along with Abu Dhabi Development Holding Company (ADQ) and private equity firm Carlyle, had offered $5.76 (A$8.89) per Santos share when the proposal was announced in mid-June. At the time, the XRG consortium said it was negotiating to carry out due diligence with Santos on an exclusive basis before formalising the offer which would need at least 75% support from Santos investors. The consortium has also agreed to a confidentiality agreement with Santos, the Australian energy firm said. XRG now stands on the cusp of a deal that would give it stakes in major operations across Australia and Papua New Guinea— pending regulatory approval. Carlyle and XRG did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Philip Copeland Bought 38% More Shares In xReality Group
Even if it's not a huge purchase, we think it was good to see that Philip Copeland, the Non-Executive Director of xReality Group Limited (ASX:XRG) recently shelled out AU$128k to buy stock, at AU$0.032 per share. While we're hesitant to get too excited about a purchase of that size, we do note it increased their holding by a solid 38%. We've found 21 US stocks that are forecast to pay a dividend yield of over 6% next year. See the full list for free. In fact, the recent purchase by Philip Copeland was the biggest purchase of xReality Group shares made by an insider individual in the last twelve months, according to our records. So it's clear an insider wanted to buy, even at a higher price than the current share price (being AU$0.029). While their view may have changed since the purchase was made, this does at least suggest they have had confidence in the company's future. We always take careful note of the price insiders pay when purchasing shares. It is generally more encouraging if they paid above the current price, as it suggests they saw value, even at higher levels. Happily, we note that in the last year insiders paid AU$383k for 10.82m shares. But they sold 2.63m shares for AU$100k. In the last twelve months there was more buying than selling by xReality Group insiders. The average buy price was around AU$0.035. This is nice to see since it implies that insiders might see value around current prices. You can see a visual depiction of insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last 12 months, below. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction! View our latest analysis for xReality Group xReality Group is not the only stock insiders are buying. So take a peek at this free list of under-the-radar companies with insider buying. Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. Insiders own 19% of xReality Group shares, worth about AU$3.7m. While this is a strong but not outstanding level of insider ownership, it's enough to indicate some alignment between management and smaller shareholders. It's certainly positive to see the recent insider purchases. And an analysis of the transactions over the last year also gives us confidence. But we don't feel the same about the fact the company is making losses. Given that insiders also own a fair bit of xReality Group we think they are probably pretty confident of a bright future. So while it's helpful to know what insiders are doing in terms of buying or selling, it's also helpful to know the risks that a particular company is facing. For example, xReality Group has 4 warning signs (and 2 which make us uncomfortable) we think you should know about. Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies. For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We currently account for open market transactions and private dispositions of direct interests only, but not derivative transactions or indirect interests. — Investing narratives with Fair Values A case for TSXV:USA to reach USD $5.00 - $9.00 (CAD $7.30–$12.29) by 2029. By Agricola – Community Contributor Fair Value Estimated: CA$12.29 · 0.9% Overvalued DLocal's Future Growth Fueled by 35% Revenue and Profit Margin Boosts By WynnLevi – Community Contributor Fair Value Estimated: $195.39 · 0.9% Overvalued Historically Cheap, but the Margin of Safety Is Still Thin By Mandelman – Community Contributor Fair Value Estimated: SEK232.58 · 0.2% Overvalued View more featured narratives — Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.
RNZ News
2 days ago
- Business
- RNZ News
Papua New Guinea welcomes UAE-backed takeover of Australian oil and gas giant
Santos is one of the largest and oldest Australian producers of oil and gas. Photo: Facebook / Santos Ltd Papua New Guinea has expressed excitement about the prospect of Dubai-owned investment firms taking over Australian oil and gas giant Santos Limited. Santos, one of the largest and oldest Australian producers of oil and gas, is facing a takeover by a consortium run by Dubai-owned XRG, with a bid of more than US$36 billion. XRG is a subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc), which is owned by the state of Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE). According to the Australian Financial Review , "Santos is a major Australian oil and gas company. Domestically, it is the second-biggest supplier of gas to Western Australia and has been a long-term operator of the Moomba gas processing hub in South Australia, a facility central to east coast gas supply for more than 50 years." The firm has a footholding in the PNG Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) field across Hides, Juha and Angore, as well as the P'nyang field in the Western Province. PNG's international trade minister Richard Maru told The National that the acquisiton represents a "major vote of confidence" in Papua New Guinea's economic potential. "We have potential for more exploration and we need competition in the oil and gas sector, hence, this development is both timely and strategic," he was quoted as saying by the news outlet. "However, while we welcome them, we must make sure that this transaction is in line with our national interest as per Section 277(6) of the Capital Market Act 2025." Papua New Guinea Minister of National Planning, Richard Maru, in Wellington, 1 May 2018. Photo: RNZ / Johnny Blades Maru said that the employment of Papua New Guineans, of which Santos currently employs around 700, according to a news report from 2023. According to the Santos 2024 annual report, the firm generated $2.5b in revenue from PNG operations, and an EBITDAX (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, Amortization, and Exploration) performance of around $2b. For oil and LNG, Santos' PNG operations yielded the greatest production level (39.5 million barrels of oil equivalent) at the lowest cost ($6.47 per barrel of oil equivalent) In terms of EBITDAX, PNG makes more than Santos' Australia and Timor Leste operations combined (about $1.7b). Santos' assets in PNG also hold more proved plus probable reserves of gas (2,567 PJ) than their Australian and Timor Leste assets.
The Guardian
4 days ago
- Business
- The Guardian
Is selling off Santos to a foreign buyer in Australia's national interest? First, define national interest
Amid the multifarious chaos of the past week, many of us might have missed the controversy over the proposed purchase of the energy business Santos by an overseas consortium. But the proposal is likely to create big problems for Australian governments and its resolution will reveal a lot about how Australian policymakers view energy and climate policy. Santos is one of the largest and oldest Australian producers of oil and gas, second only to Woodside Energy (its name is an acronym of South Australia and Northern Territory Oil Search). The core of its operation is the Moomba gas field in the Cooper Basin, in the north-east corner of South Australia. The company now supplies gas to the entire eastern seaboard and has assets in the Timor Sea and Papua New Guinea. The consortium proposing to buy Santos, called XRG, is owned by the Carlyle Group and the state-owned Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc). Carlyle, named for the New York hotel where its founders met to set up the business, is one of the world's largest private equity companies, with close ties to what US President Eisenhower described as the 'military-industrial complex'. Its early years are described in Dan Briody's book The Iron Triangle. Abu Dhabi is the wealthiest and most important of the United Arab Emirates. The value of its state-owned enterprises and sovereign wealth funds total over a trillion dollars. Abu Dhabi's wealth is derived almost entirely from oil and gas, so it is unsurprising to see its national oil company pursuing expansion through acquisitions like the proposed buyout of Santos. Unsurprisingly the prospect of handing ownership of a large share of Australia's energy resources to buyers like these has raised concerns. Most commonly, these are expressed in terms of energy security or, more nebulously, national interest. The issue of energy security can be dismissed pretty rapidly. Unlike the oil we import, the gas is physically located here. If we need it, we can keep it, regardless of the legalities of ownership, contracts and so on. At one time, perhaps, such an attitude might have raised concerns about sovereign risk, threats to future investment and so on. Foreign owners might have threatened us with action under Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) agreements. But the 'rules-based order' in which such concerns made sense, is largely a thing of the past, for good or ill. ISDS, in particular, is more or less dead. Even so, the government has shied away from fixing the absurdly unfavourable gas export contracts signed by Santos and others a decade ago. Concerns about how the deal might affect our national interest are harder to address, mainly because Australian governments have no clear idea of what our national interest might be. It might be argued that we ought to be maximising the returns from our natural resources, while winding down fossil fuels, in line with the goal of achieving 'net zero' emissions globally by 2050. But there is no sign that Australian energy policy is motivated by such goals. In fact, Santos has been a major player in the expansion of gas exports, notably of LNG from Queensland, and is pushing for even higher exports. The company has just received regulatory approval for the $5.8bn Barossa offshore gas project off the Northern Territory coast, described by critics as a 'carbon bomb'. The extra financial resources available to XRG might accelerate this. What is in our 'national interest' is similarly incoherent in regards to tax revenue. Australia taxes its massive gas exports weakly, and it's hard to see how we would get a worse deal from a foreign owned company compared to an Australian one. Sign up to Breaking News Australia Get the most important news as it breaks after newsletter promotion Finally, neither Carlyle nor Adnoc can be expected to have any concern with the wellbeing of Australians. Carlyle, as a private company, is concerned with maximising its profits. Adnoc wants profits but also more influence over global markets. But it is a mistake to think that Santos cares any more, except about those Australians who happen to be shareholders, and who can expect a big payout if the takeover goes ahead. John Quiggin is a professor at the University of Queensland's school of economics
