Woodside Energy, Australia's largest oil and gas producer, has agreed to buy US LNG export project developer Tellurian for US$900 million.

The Perth, Australia-based company will pay US$1 per share in cash, significantly higher than the target's latest US stock close of 57 US cents, to take full control of the US company, including the Driftwood LNG project under construction at Lake Charles on the Louisiana Gulf Coast.

The implied enterprise value is US$1.2 billion. This represents an attractive entry into an opportunity with more than US$1 billion of expenditure incurred to date.

Woodside expects to be ready for a final investment decision on the first phase of the Driftwood project early next year.

Lazard, which in 2023 was mandated to find a buyer for Tellurian, is acting as financial adviser to the US company. Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP is serving as legal counsel to Tellurian.

“The acquisition of Tellurian and its Driftwood LNG development opportunity positions Woodside to be a global LNG powerhouse,” says Woodside chief executive Meg O’Neill. “It adds a scalable US LNG development opportunity to our existing approximately 10 [million tonnes per annum] of equity LNG in Australia."