By OGJ editors
HOUSTON, Aug. 13 -- El Paso Corp.'s long-range plan is to reduce the company's debt, net of cash, to $15 billion by yearend 2005. Targeting asset sales of $3.3- 3.9 billion by that date, the company to date has announced or closed $3.5 billion in asset sales. Among the latest sales:
El Paso Production Co. closed the sale of its shares in Coastal Indonesia Sampang Ltd. to Singapore Petroleum Co. Ltd. for $23.2 million plus working capital. Coastal Indonesia owns a 40% working interest in the Sampang production-sharing contract in Indonesia.
Another unit, El Paso Merchant Energy, has closed the sale of 10 California electric power generation plants for $28 million to equity partner Redwood LLC, an affiliate of John Hancock Life Insurance Co. The plants were among 25 domestic power plants that El Paso earlier had agreed to sell to Northern Star Generation LLC, prior to Redwood's exercising its first right of refusal to purchase the 10 plants.
Brazilian purchase
In a purchase transaction, the company's EL Paso Production International Cayman Co. unit has acquired Unocal Global Ventures II Ltd.'s 50% equity interest in a jointly held company that owns Brazilian exploration and production venture UnoPaso Exploracao e Producao de Petroleo e Gas Ltda. El Paso now owns 100% of UnoPaso.
The purchase price was $61 million and about $7 million in working capital. Unocal may also receive up to $19 million in potential additional payments contingent on attainment of specified natural gas prices or volume thresholds.
