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Input: MELBOURNE (Reuters) - Woodside Petroleum (WPL.AX)  Australia’s biggest independent gas and oil producer  is set to raise A$2.5 billion ($1.96 billion) to fund the purchase of ExxonMobil Corp’s (XOM.N) stake in the Scarborough gas field and to support projects at home and in West Africa.
The move puts Woodside  seen by some as short on near-term growth prospects  in a better position to develop the Scarborough field off Western Australia  as it will have a 75-percent stake and take over running the project  now estimated to cost up to $9.7 billion. Woodside’s share of that cost would be up to $7.9 billion.
Analysts raised concern that even with the large equity raising  the company may have to come back to investors in a few years to fund development of  Scarborough  and the competing Browse LNG project  also off Western Australia.
Woodside Chief Executive Peter Coleman said the company could now accelerate development of  Scarborough  to feed an expansion of its Pluto LNG plant  which would help fill a need for new LNG supply  particularly as Chinese demand grows rapidly.
However  investors were more focused on the stake-acquisition and plans to develop  Scarborough .
The company has agreed to buy ExxonMobil’s 50-percent stake in  Scarborough  for up to $744 million  with part of that due pending a final investment decision on developing the field.
The other partner in  Scarborough   BHP Billiton (BHP.AX)(BLT.L)  welcomed the deal.
“This development could enhance the commercial viability of  Scarborough  and the region ” BHP’s petroleum president Steve Pastor said in a comment emailed to Reuters.
The rest of the money Woodside is raising through the A$2.5 billion offer to existing shareholders will be used to support work on  Scarborough   the SNE oil project off Senegal and progress on Browse.

Australia's Woodside to raise $2 billion for Scarborough stake oil and gas projects