AsianOil: Jadestone drops plans to buy OMV's stake in the Maari field off New Zealand

Austria’s OMV has dropped plans to divest its 69% interest in the Maari field off the coast of New Zealand to Asia-focused Jadestone Energy because of regulatory delays – a deal that the pair agreed to enter into in 2019.

Jadestone said in a statement last week that it had engaged with OMV following changes to New Zealand’s upstream regulatory framework at the end of last year, and had also worked with the government to seek clarity on the processes, terms and associated timeframe needed to complete the deal. Because of a lack of progress in securing regulatory approval, and uncertainty about when that approval will arrive, the two companies have “reluctantly” decided to terminate the deal, Jadestone said.

“Whilst disappointing, we have been signalling that the lack of progress on Maari was an increasing concern and today, almost twelve months after the new legislation came into effect, there is still little to no clarity on what is required from Jadestone to receive the necessary government approval to complete the deal,” company CEO Paul Blakeley commented. 

If you’d like to read more about the key events shaping Europe’s oil and gas sector then please click here for NewsBase’s AsianOil Monitor.