Philippines, Malampaya Energy buys SPEX

In the Philippines, Shell Petroleum is selling its stake in Shell Philippines Exploration (SPEX) to Malampaya Energy (MEXP). Malampaya Energy is a subsidiary of Prime Infrastructure Capital Inc (Prime Infra).

Industrial reconfiguration

In the Philippines, the conclusion of the sale between Shell and Malampaya results in the control of SPEX by Prime Infra. However, SPEX staff will continue to work under the new owner. SPEX continues to hold a 45% operational interest and remains the operator of the Malampaya gas field.

The other members of the Service Contract 38 consortium are UC38 LLC, a subsidiary of Udenna Corporation, and PNOC Exploration Corporation (PNOC EC). They hold 45% and 10% of the shares respectively. Zoe Yujnovich, Shell’s upstream manager says:

“Since operations began in 2002, the Malampaya gas field has provided a significant portion of the Philippines’ energy demand through the dedicated work of our partners and staff, past and present.”

A historic location

This agreement has no impact on Shell’s other activities in the country. The Philippines remains an important country for Shell after more than a century of successful operations. Shell will continue to seek opportunities in the Philippines where it can leverage its global expertise.

In May 2021, Shell Petroleum signed an agreement to sell its stake in Malampaya. In July 2022, Prime Infra acquires MEXP, the legal entity that entered into an agreement with Shell to acquire SPEX. SPEX has been licensed to operate in the Philippines since 1990 and subsequently became the operator of Malampaya.