LNG

TotalEnergies, the French major under fire for its energy links to Russia, is now the target of European Union-led critics who wish to tax energy companies more, using almost any pretext.

TotalEnergies has completed a transaction in Australia with the US equity fund Global Infrastructure Partners in relation to the downstream facilities of the Gladstone LNG project in Queensland for a sum of more than US$750 million.

The downstream assets are owned by TotalEnergies subsidiary Total GLNG Australia (TGA).

“As part of this transaction, GIP will receive a throughput-based tolling fee calculated on TGA’s share of gas processed through the downstream facilities over a period of 15 years,” explained TotalEnergies.

TGA retains full control and ownership of its 27.5 percent interest in the Gladstone LNG downstream joint venture.

“We have worked closely with GIP to achieve this infrastructure transaction and are happy of this first collaboration with such an experienced infrastructure partner,” said Jean-Pierre Sbraire, Chief Financial Officer at TotalEnergies.

Monetization

“This monetization of infrastructure assets contributes to focusing further TotalEnergies’ capital on core producing assets,” he added.

The Gladstone LNG plant, operated by Adelaide-based Santos, is one of three coal-seam-gas to-LNG ventures on Curtis Island near the port of Gladstone.

The other GLNG project partners are Malaysian oil and gas company Petronas and Korea Gas Corp

The integrated LNG project consists of CSG gas wells producing feed gas from the Fairview, Arcadia, Roma and Scotia fields, located in the onshore Bowen-Surat Basin in Queensland.

The GLNG plant and the neighbouring Shell-operated Queensland Curtis facility and the ConocoPhillips-run Australia-Pacific plant ship cargoes to Asia, mainly China, South Korea and Japan.

The GLNG project includes pipeline transportation of the CSG over a distance of around 400 kilometres to the liquefaction plant.

The plant, which has been on stream since 2015, consists of two Trains with a total nameplate capacity in excess of 7.8 million tonnes per annum. 

French major Total SA has changed its name to Total SE on global stock markets to identify as a European rather than a French company just after it confirmed that project financing was in place for the Mozambique LNG project using Area 1 feed-gas in the Rovuma Basin.

“Total has registered with the Trade and Companies Register of Nanterre (near Paris) as a European Company,” said Total.

The new SE addition means “Societas Europaea (SE)”, Latin for European company. The Total name was previously followed by the French term “Société anonyme (SA)” , meaning a public limited company, the equivalent of Plc in English.

“This follows negotiations with employees’ representatives in 25 countries of the European Economic Area,” added Total, which has a global workforce of around 100,000 people.

It noted that members of the Special Negotiating Body for management and unions had approved and signed an agreement relating to the procedures for the involvement of employees in this new European Company.

“The Company will now be listed as Total SE on stock markets trading its shares and American Depositary Shares,” explained Total.

However, its identifying ticker on the Paris Euronext exchange (FP) and New York Stock Exchange (TOT) will remain unchanged.

The shares were last trading at €33.83 per share, down 1.75 percent, and valuing the company at around €88.45 billion ($101Bln).

The change to Total's name was announced as the energy major's Chief Financial Officer Jean-Pierre Sbraire said that he was pleased with the signing of the $14.9-billion senior debt financing agreement for Mozambique LNG.

The joint venture includes the development of the Golfinho and Atum natural gas fields located in Offshore Area 1 concession and the construction of a two-Train liquefaction plant with a total capacity of 13.1 million tonnes per annum.

“The signing of this large-scale project financing, less than one year after Total assumed the role of operator of Mozambique LNG, represents a significant achievement and a major milestone for the project,” declared CFO Sbraire.

“It demonstrates the confidence placed by the financial institutions in the long-term future of LNG in Mozambique,” he added.

“This key milestone has been reached thanks to the dedication of the Mozambique authorities and the financial partners of the project,” stated the CFO.

Total said that the African venture represented a total post-financial investment decision outlay of $20Bln.

“The project financing amounts to $14.9Bln, the biggest ever in Africa, and includes direct and covered loans from eight Export Credit Agencies (ECAs), 19 commercial bank facilities and a loan from the African Development Bank,” Total explained.

The ECAs that participated in the financing included Export Import Bank of the United-States (US-Exim), Japan Bank for International Corporation (JBIC), Nippon Export and Investment Insurance (NEXI), UK Export Finance (UKEF), Servizi Assicurativi del Commercio Estero of Italy (SACE), Export Credit Insurance Corp. of South Africa (ECIC), Atradius Dutch State Business (Atradius) and Export-Import Bank of Thailand (EXIM Thailand).

The Area 1 shareholding has Total as operator with a 26.5 percent participating interest alongside Mozambican state energy company ENH (15 percent).

Japan’s Mitsui & Co. owns 20 percent, India’s ONGC Videsh, Bharat PetroResources and Beas Rovuma Energy each hold 10 percent and Thailand’s PTTEP 8.5 percent. 

French energy major Total will make a final investment decision on the Nigeria liquefied natural gas expansion project to build a seventh Train by the end of the year and said that its acquisition of Mozambique LNG assets fits well into its growth strategy.