By Jessica Jaganathan
SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Private equity-backed Trident Energy will scour for oil and gas assets in Southeast Asia, with a focus on mid-life producing assets that can be redeveloped to create value, a senior executive told Reuters.
Set up by former senior executives of independent Anglo-French oil firm Perenco in September, the London-based firm is looking to acquire onshore and offshore assets primarily in Africa, Latin America and Southeast Asia.
“We believe there is a big mid-life assets potential in Southeast Asia, mostly in Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia and also in Brunei, Vietnam and the Philippines … so it’s a good time to invest,” said Thibault d’Argent, Trident Energy’s new business manager.
“We’re looking at fields producing more than 15,000 barrels-per-day and with more than 50 million barrels of reserves.”
The company has yet to make any acquisitions but is looking mainly at developed assets where wells have been drilled but production is declining. It aims to stabilise and optimise output and then resell the assets within 5 to 10 years, he said.
U.S.-based private equity firm Warburg Pincus LLC led a line of equity financing of up to $500 million to Trident this year and the firm is in talks with a sovereign fund to secure more funding, d’Argent said, declining to give more details.
Trident Energy is one of many private-equity backed companies eyeing energy assets in Southeast Asia as a prolonged bout of lower crude oil prices has driven oil majors hungry for cash to divest or seek additional funds.
Management staff at Trident Energy include Perenco’s former chief executive Jean-Michel Jacoulot and Perenco’s former chief financial officer Eric Descourtieux.
(Reporting by Jessica Jaganathan; Editing by Richard Pullin)