Origin enters into agreement to sell Mortlake Terminal Station

Origin Energy Limited has recently announced it has entered into a sale agreement with AusNet Services for the sale of Mortlake Terminal Station for a cash consideration of US$80 million.

The Mortlake Power Station is a 550 MW open cycle gas-fired power station developed by Origin Energy, located 12 kilometers west of Mortlake, Victoria.The plant is located on approximately 20 hectares of land.

Mortlake Terminal Station, which is currently operated and maintained by AusNet Services, connects Origin’s Mortlake Power Station to Victoria’s electricity grid.

The transaction is in line with the Origin’s asset divestment program announced in September 2015 targeting asset sales for the amount of US$575 million, the planned sale of Mortlake Terminal Station stands to provide Origin a pre-tax gain of approximately US$18 million.

Under the terms of the transaction, Origin will enter into a long-term agreement with AusNet Services to continue with the connection of Mortlake Power Station to the Victorian network.

The transaction is expected to be completed prior to 30 June 2016. 

Origin Managing Director, Grant King said,

“The sale of Mortlake Terminal Station demonstrates progress against our stated intention to generate $800 million through asset divestments including non-operated upstream interests, direct investments in wind generation and infrastructure assets. In turn, this will help strengthen Origin’s balance sheet and build resilience in a lower oil price environment."