Santos Receives Takeover Bid from Abu Dhabi National Oil Unit

Santos Limited has received a takeover bid from a consortium led by Abu Dhabi National Oil. The bid focuses on three regional business units: Eastern Australia and PNG, Northern Australia and Timor-Leste, and Western Australia. Santos Energy Solutions and Upstream Gas and Liquids support these units. The company produces natural gas, gas liquids, and crude oil, with sales to domestic and export markets.

Santos Limited (ASX: STO), Australia's second-largest oil and gas producer, has received a significant takeover bid from a consortium led by Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC). The consortium, known as the XRG Consortium, has offered to acquire all outstanding shares of Santos at a price of $5.76 per share, valuing the company at $18.72 billion [1].

The offer represents a substantial 28% premium to Santos' June 13 closing price of $6.96. This premium is even higher when compared to the company's volume-weighted average prices (VWAP) over different time frames, including a 30% premium to the one-week VWAP, a 34% premium to the one-month VWAP, a 44% premium to the three-month VWAP, and a 39% premium to the six-month VWAP [2].

The XRG Consortium, which includes ADNOC, Abu Dhabi Development Holding Company (ADQ), and global private equity firm Carlyle, has made this offer following two earlier confidential proposals in March 2025. The latest offer is described as a "final non-binding indicative offer" by Santos [3].

The Santos board has agreed to grant the consortium due diligence access to progress the offer further. The board believes it is in the best interests of shareholders to allow confirmatory due diligence and negotiation of a binding Scheme Implementation Agreement (SIA). However, the deal remains subject to regulatory approvals and other conditions [4].

Santos' shares have been trading at $8.02, up 15% from their close on Friday, following the announcement of the takeover bid. The share price is now up 9% over the past 12 months [1].

References:
[1] https://www.fool.com.au/2025/06/16/santos-shares-rocket-on-30b-takeover-offer/
[2] https://www.afr.com/companies/energy/abu-dhabi-oil-giant-carlyle-lob-30b-takeover-bid-for-santos-20250616-p5m7o0
[3] https://www.hartenergy.com/exclusives/adnoc-carlyle-offer-188b-australias-santos-ltd-213217
[4] https://www.marketscreener.com/quote/stock/SANTOS-LIMITED-6491535/news/Santos-Gets-Takeover-Offer-From-Consortium-Led-By-Unit-Of-Abu-Dhabi-National-Oil-Co-50245167/