Page 10 - AfrOil Week 07 2020

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PROJECTS & COMPANIES
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Sound Energy did not reveal many details of the proposed revisions, but it did say that the micro-LNG scheme provided for the construc- tion of a liquefaction plant for natural gas from TE-Horst, a eld within Tendrara.
It described this solution as “innovative, fast- track [and] cost-e cient” and said it would pave the way towards the execution of the full- eld development plan, with its more expansive out- look and longer timescale, at a later date.
The company said that it hoped to begin producing LNG and delivering it to industrial users in Morocco sometime in 2021, pending approval from any potential partners in the Tendrara deal. is milestone would follow a nal investment decision (FID) in the second quarter of 2020, it added, noting that its existing cash resources were adequate to cover working capital requirements until that time.
Sound Energy hopes to move the project for- ward during ongoing negotiations with Moroc- co’s O ce National de l’Electricité et de l’Eau Potable on the full eld development plan and on a gas sales agreement. In the meantime, it has also started talks with potential end-users and distributors of LNG in Morocco. It is also work- ing towards agreement with potential sources of funding and suppliers of equipment, according to the statement.
e micro-LNG project is coming to light as Sound Energy expands its search for a partner in the Tendrara contract. e company began exclusive negotiations with a potential investor last November, but on February 17 it said the other party had concluded due diligence with- out signing a sales and purchase agreement (SPA) or establishing its ability to fund the transaction. “Accordingly, discussions continue with the purchaser but these discussions are no
longer exclusive, and there can be no certainty that the proposed transaction will proceed or will successfully conclude,” it stated.
The company did not name any poten- tial partners. But its acting CEO Mohammad Seghiri said that the board of directors had been “active in considering and re ning in parallel other options to monetise its asset at Tendrara.”
Seghiri added: “We continue to believe that we have a valuable position in the Moroccan energy sector encompassing a signi cant dis- covery in Tendrara with exciting additional exploration upside potential. e micro-LNG development plan has been identi ed as an ini- tial and rapid development strategy to prioritise early monetisation of the existing gas discovery, which can in turn facilitate a larger ultimate development. I look forward to reporting fur- ther on our progress in due course.”.™
Arbitration court rules against FAR in dispute over Sangomar stake
The original plan for Tendrara hinges on a pipeline (Image: Sound Energy)
SENEGAL
THE International Court of Arbitration (ICA) of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) has issued a ruling that favours Woodside Petroleum in its dispute with FAR over the sale of equity in Sangomar, an oil-bearing block located offshore Senegal. Both companies acknowledged the court’s decision last week, saying that they had heard the verdict.
e two Australian operators have been in arbitration since June 2017. At that time, FAR lodged a complaint, alleging that that Cono- coPhillips (US) had sold its 35% stake in San- gomar to Woodside in 2016 without giving existing shareholders the opportunity to pre- empt the transaction. e ICA agreed to take
the case and made a decision a er hearing the case in July 2019.
In its verdict, the court stated that FAR did not have the right to pre-empt ConocoPhillips’ deal with Woodside. It also dismissed the Aus- tralian firm’s other claims against Woodside and instructed both parties to draw up plans for their next steps in light of the court’s decision.
FAR had been hoping for a di erent result.
An ICA ruling in its favour would have allowed
it to raise its stake in Sangomar, which is likely
to require investments of $4.2bn, at a compara-
tively low price. Instead, news of the court’s ver-
dict caused the company’s stock prices to sink
on February 13. 
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