MidOcean Energy, the LNG investment platform backed by Saudi Aramco, has emerged as the front-runner to acquire a significant minority stake in Petronas’s Canadian gas and LNG business, according to people familiar with the talks, cited by Bloomberg. The deal, now reportedly in late-stage negotiations, could value the assets between $6 and $7 billion, making it one of the largest LNG transactions of the year.
Petronas’s Canadian unit includes extensive upstream operations in British Columbia and a 25% stake in the LNG Canada terminal, a major West Coast export project now under construction and slated to begin operations in 2026. A completed transaction would give Aramco exposure to North America’s fast-growing LNG export corridor through MidOcean.
MidOcean was launched by U.S.-based EIG Global Energy Partners and became central to Aramco’s LNG strategy following its 2023 equity infusion. Since then, MidOcean has snapped up stakes in liquefaction projects in Australia, Peru, and now aims to enter Canada, cementing its role as a global LNG consolidator.
Petronas, meanwhile, is seeking to monetize non-core assets to reallocate capital toward decarbonization and domestic priorities while maintaining strategic LNG positions. The Canadian divestment aligns with that strategy.
While sources told Bloomberg that other suitors could resurface, MidOcean is currently viewed as the preferred bidder. Final terms may be announced later this summer, pending regulatory review and corporate approvals.
Aramco’s potentially indirect foothold in Canada reflects rising Gulf interest in supply basins outside the Middle East, as demand from China, South Korea, and India fuels long-term LNG growth.
By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com
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