KUALA LUMPUR (March 11): Bumi Armada Bhd has issued a retaliatory termination notice of contract to Australia-based Woodside Energy Julimar Pty Ltd for the charter of the Armada Claire floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) unit.

In a filing with Bursa Malaysia, Bumi Armada said its wholly-owned subsidiary, Armada Balnaves Pte Ltd (ABPL), has issued the notice of termination of contract to Woodside today.

Following this, Bumi Armada said ABPL reserves the right to claim damages against Woodside for its breach of the contract.

"Bumi Armada’s and ABPL’s position is that Woodside had, by the issuance of the purported notice of termination dated March 4 and its subsequent conduct, evinced, and continued to evince, an intention to no longer be bound by the terms of the contract.

"This amounted to a repudiation of the contract, which entitled ABPL to terminate the contract," it added.
 
Bumi Armada said it will continue to provide updates from time to time on any further material development on this matter.

Last week, Bumi Armada announced it planned to seek compensation for what it sees as Woodside’s unlawful termination the Armada Claire charter contract. The FPSO has reportedly been operating in the Balnaves Field, off northwestern Australia, since August 2014.

Bumi Armada said the contract’s termination was expected to impact the full year 2016 financial results of the group. It added that the extent of impact could not be determined at this time, as it would depend on the outcome of its legal action against Woodside.

Bumi Armada’s major shareholders include the Employees Provident Fund Board which holds a 8.74% stake in the group, and Amanah Saham Bumiputera Scheme with a 7.64% stake.

Bumi Armada shares closed one sen or 1.27% higher at 80 sen today, with a market capitalisation of RM4.69 billion.