Apache dumps Australian, Canadian LNG assets

U.S. energy company Apache Corp. announced Monday it was selling its stakes in Australian and Canadian gas projects for $2.75 billion.

"I am proud of Apache's legacy in advancing the Wheatstone and Kitimat liquefied natural gas projects, and I am confident that Woodside's participation will have a positive impact in seeing these world-class LNG facilities through to first production," G. Steven Farris, the top executive at Apache, said in a statement.

Apache sold its interests, which include oil and natural gas reserves, to Australian energy company Woodside Petroleum. Apache under the terms of the deal is also reimbursed around $1 billion for net expenses on the two LNG projects.

The first phase of the Wheatstone project envisions deliveries of up to 8.9 million tons of LNG per year from third-party gas projects in Australia. The proposed Kitimat project in British Columbia has a planned capacity of 5 million tons of LNG per year.

There was no statement on the acquisition from Woodside. Apache, which expects the deal to close during the first quarter of 2015, said this year it was retooling its efforts elsewhere in North America.

Its inland assets in the region account for about 60 percent of its global operations.