State behemoth Saudi Aramco and UK supermajor Shell are reportedly battling it out to buy the liquefied natural gas assets of Singapore’s Pavilion Energy from Temasek, the city state government’s investment arm, after both suitors completed the due diligence process.
The potential sale comes a decade after Temasek established Pavilion Energy to focus on LNG-related investments. The assets could fetch more than US$2 billion, Reuters reported, although there is no guarantee of a deal if Temasek’s undisclosed price guideline is not met.
As one of four entities, including Shell, that have been appointed by Singapore’s Energy Market Authority to import LNG, Pavilion today meets one-third of the nation’s power and industrial gas demand with LNG and pipeline natural gas. Pavilion also supplies LNG to ships in Singapore.
Pavilion’s assets include regasification capacity in the UK and Spain, and upstream gas acreage in Tanzania. The sale reportedly excludes the company’s gas pipeline business.
Shell told Upstream that it is a “no comment” on the matter, while neither Aramco nor Pavilion had responded to a request for comment at the time of publication.
Aramco is known to have plans to boost international gas-based acquisitions across the value chain and is eyeing multiple international assets. The company is also seeking a wider foothold in key Asian markets including India, China and Southeast Asia, which it sees as strong consumers, and which too is in line with the company’s recently renewed gas-based expansion strategy.
