Mitsui to acquire Australia's AWE for US$478 million

When Australian upstream player AWE received a US$357 million (A$0.71/share) takeover offer from Chinese state-owned trader CERGC in November 2017, it sparked a bidding war. A December offer of A$0.83/share by local mining services company Mineral Resources was trumped by a US$478 million (A$0.95/share) bid by Mitsui & Co in January. The AWE board has recommended shareholders accept the offer from Mitsui, which rises to US$492 million when including net debt and working capital. AWE's crown jewel is the 765 bcf (2P) Waitsia gas field, onshore Western Australia. This is the largest onshore conventional gas discovery in Australia in the last 40 years. Ongoing appraisal success, with the last well testing at a peak rate of 90 mmcfd, suggests there is scope for considerable reserves upside. Mitsui has an existing position in both the west and east coast Australian gas markets; the acquisition of AWE turns it into a major player on both sides of the continent.