The public brawling over Origin Energy’s future ownership reveals how much is at stake in the shareholder vote on November 23.
Aitken argues the real issue is all about fees – both for the bidders and for the investment bankers pushing the deal, in this case Barrenjoey and Jarden. The bidding partners are clearly feeling particularly aggrieved. They had hoped they had passed through the last major barrier when the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission gave its approval last month.
EIG instead clearly agrees with Woodside chief executive Meg O’Neill. In an investor update on Wednesday, O’Neill said that growth for demand for LNG in particular was expected to continue as buyers seek to secure supplies to support renewables as they decarbonise. In a statement released at the end of last month, the fund described Origin as having a “unique portfolio of market-leading energy assets and an advantaged position to capture value from the energy transition”.