Arab Energy Fund invests $120 million in EIG’s MidOcean

EIG said in a statement on Wednesday that TAEF’s investment “further strengthens MidOcean’s high-quality investor base and underscores continued strong interest in the company’s strategy to build a diversified, resilient, and long-life global LNG business.”

According to EIG, there is “significant further momentum” from additional investors currently in documentation, and MidOcean will continue to raise capital, with a cumulative target of up to $2 billion from new investors.

De la Rey Venter, CEO of MidOcean, said this investment supports the company’s strategy of building a diversified LNG portfolio and “positions us well to execute on our identified growth opportunities.”

“We welcome TAEF with its more than 50 years of experience in energy investing and focus on energy security and sustainability,” he said.

In March this year, Japan’s Idemitsu Kosan announced it would invest $500 million in MidOcean, marking the first step in its full-scale entry into the LNG business, while Japanese city gas supplier and LNG import terminal operator, Shizuoka Gas, decided to invest $100 million in MidOcean.

During the same month, MidOcean, in which Saudi Arabia’s energy behemoth Aramco has a 49 percent stake, entered into a definitive agreement with Japan’s Jera to buy the latter’s stakes in the Gorgon and Ichthys LNG export projects in Australia.

MidOcean is an existing participant in the Gorgon LNG project, which earlier this year shipped its 2,000th cargo, and this transaction increases MidOcean’s interest in Gorgon to 1.417 percent.

Last year, MidOcean completed its acquisition of Tokyo Gas Co.’s interests in a portfolio of Australian integrated LNG projects.

These include Gorgon LNG, Woodside’s Pluto LNG, and Shell’s Queensland Curtis LNG projects.