Beach Energy has reached agreement with OMV GSB Limited to acquire a 30% participating interest in exploration permit PEP50119 in the Great South Basin, offshore New Zealand.

Under the agreement, Beach will acquire a 30% participating interest in the permit in exchange for funding a 30% share of the Tawhaki-1 well cost and the associated work program and budget. The estimated capital exposure is approximately $25 million net to Beach.

The transaction is subject to New Zealand government and regulator approval.

Following completion, Beach's interest in PEP50119 will be 30%, with operator OMV holding a 52.93% interest and Mitsui E&P Australia Pty Ltd holding 17.07%.

Tawhaki prospect

The PEP50119 exploration permit contains the large Tawhaki prospect and other leads. Tawhaki is a basement drape structural trap with up to 470 km2under structural closure. The prospect is defined by modern, high- quality 3D seismic data and interpreted to have Cretaceous reservoirs of similar age and quality to the excellent sandstones encountered in Caravel-1, approximately 130 km to the north in PEP38264 (Beach 37.5% and operator).

The Tawhaki-1 well is planned to be drilled in early calendar 2020 by the COSL Prospector rig as part of a larger OMV-led drilling campaign.

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