Santos' $2.2 billion acquisition of the northern Australian gas business of  ConocoPhillips is tipped to set off a wave of asset deals in the region as players get their interests aligned across existing LNG projects and their new sources of gas supply.

Analysts are flagging a further reshuffle of interests in Darwin LNG and the Barossa gas field that is set to become the new source of supply for the LNG plant after the existing source, the Bayu-Undan field in the Timor Sea, runs out. Both will now be led by Santos after the buyout of the US major announced on Monday.