On June 17, 2014, Woodside announced a selective buyback of its shares that are currently held by Shell, at a price of US$2,680 million. This proposed share buyback will be funded from a combination of Woodside's existing cash and debt facilities. In our opinion, the current rating on Woodside can accommodate this sizable capital-management initiative, given Woodside's currently strong credit metrics. As such, we affirmed our 'BBB+' rating on Woodside and its associated senior unsecured debt issues. We have revised the outlook to stable, from positive, as the proposed transaction will remove the upside pressure on the rating due to increased debt leverage. We also believe that if the proposed transaction does not proceed, Woodside's management would explore other opportunities
