International Petroleum Finance articles from June 2003

International Petroleum Finance archives from June 2003

Dead or alive?
June 1, 2003... What do Exxon Mobil and tiny Canadian independent Ivanhoe Energy have in common? At first glance, not much--but in a few weeks time, they could both find themselves counting the cost, in time and money, of years of fruitless negotiations on...

New players, new rules for global M&A.
June 1, 2003... Once the undisputed capital of upstream merger and acquisition (M&A) activity, North America has taken a backseat to overseas markets over the past 18 months. Expensive asset prices, weak exploration results, and high operating costs have...

BP driving liquidity in upstream M&A.
June 1, 2003... BP has done a pretty good job of driving international M&A activity all by itself this year, completing $2.5 billion worth of asset sales in the first quarter alone. There is much more to come, however. Chief financial officer Byron Grote...

Iran stirs in response to Iraq investment threat.
June 1, 2003... Aware of the huge production potential that could start to unfold in neighboring Iraq, Iran appears to have injected a sense of urgency in its negotiations with foreign oil companies on upstream buyback deals. But foreign oil executives in...

Alien tort suits a worry for big business.
June 1, 2003... These are interesting times for students of the complex relationship between business, government and the law. Last month, the Bush administration made its first formal comment on a US federal lawsuit brought against the oil company Unocal in...

Weak Asian margins point to Caltex writedown.
June 1, 2003... Unrelenting weak refining margins have made operating in Asia-Pacific markets particularly trying for all of the region's downstream players for some time now. However, the sluggish business environment could result in an embarrassing black...

Sakhalin investment potential becoming a reality.
June 1, 2003... Multibillion-dollar investments in oil and gas development offshore the penal colony of Russia's Sakhalin Island are becoming a reality. Royal Dutch/Shell and Japan's Mitsui and Mitsubishi have given the green light to launch the $10 billion...

Investors cautious amid Argentina's recovery.
June 1, 2003... Those investors, Spanish or otherwise, who threw money into Argentina's energy sector during Carlos Menem's aggressive privatization program of the 1990s, have had reason to look more cheerful of late. After the instability and upheaval of the...

Business as usual for African specialist.
June 1, 2003... Six months since beating off core shareholder Petronas' predatory bid, and with just six more until market rules allow the Malaysian state another onslaught, Energy Africa managing director Rhidwaan Gasant and operations chief Adrian Nel have...

BP still wary on Iraq.(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... BP will not enter Iraq until there is a new government that can decide oil policy, according to the company's chief executive John Browne. Such a move "is a long way off" for the UK supermajor, Browne added. Iraq's new government would...

Ivanhoe's Qatar talks end.(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... State-owned Qatar Petroleum and Canadian independent lvanhoe Energy have broken off talks on developing a block in the country's giant North gas field without reaching an agreement. Ivanhoe had been negotiating to develop the block to produce...

Premier, Fusion swap assets.(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... UK independent Premier Oil has agreed to buy a raft of assets in the exploration hotspot of northwest Africa from Australia's tiny Fusion Oil & Gas, including the deepwater Chinguetti and Banda oil discoveries offshore Mauritania. Premier...

BG eyes Tunisian power plant.(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... The UK's BG Group has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Tunisian government to develop the $250 million Barca power project in Sfax. The 500-megawatt, combined-cycle gas turbine project will be built adjacent to BG's Hannibal...

NIOC set for UK debut.(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... National Iranian Oil Co. (NIOC) is to make its debut in the UK North Sea as a partner to BP in the Rhum gas field, development of which has now been given the green light. Rhum, a high-pressure and high-temperature gas and condensate...

Greek refiners to merge.(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... The Greek government has raised $383 million from the sale of a 16.65% stake in refiner Hellenic Petroleum to the Latsis Group. Latsis is the main shareholder in a rival Greek refiner, Petrola, and the deal is ultimately expected to lead to a...

Yukos, CNPC ink agreements.(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... Russia's Yukos and China National Petroleum Corp. (CNPC) signed two important documents during Chinese leader Hu Jintao's visit to Moscow at the end of May, but Russia still stopped short of giving a binding commitment to build an oil pipeline...

Kazakhs sell producer stake.(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... The Kazakhstan government has sold a strategic stake in producer CNPC-Aktobemunaigas to an unidentified buyer for $135 million. The stake of 25% plus one share had given the Kazakh government blocking rights on company decisions. Straight...

BP becomes mini-tender target.(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... BP has become the latest target of a "mini-tender" offer by TRC Capital, a Toronto-based investment firm that routinely engages in the practice of making below-market bids to acquire small equity stakes in companies, aiming to turn a quick...

Pemex audit questioned.(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... An audit of state-owned oil company Petroleos Mexicanos (Pemex) by a Mexican congressional committee regarding financial information for 2001 has led to charges of irregularities and has opened the possibility of a "scandal" timed to influence...

Petrobras to boost Argentine output.(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... Brazilian state-controlled Petrobras plans to invest around $2 billion in its recently acquired Argentine unit Pecom Energia (Perez Companc)--now known as Petrobras Energia Participaciones--and expects to double the unit's oil and gas output to...

Indian refiner sale moves ahead.(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... Despite opposition from labour unions, legal hurdles and the Sars virus, the Indian government hopes to complete the privatisation of state oil refiners Hindustan Petroleum and Bharat Petroleum in the last quarter of its current fiscal year,...

Sigh of relief pushes oil shares past broad market in May. (Equity Markets).
June 1, 2003... After missing out on the fun in April, shares of top integrated oil and gas companies rallied past the broader equity market in May spurred by crude oil prices that continued to firm despite investor fears of a collapse after the US-led war...

CNOOC impresses with $500 million bond coup. (Emerging Markets).
June 1, 2003... A $500 million bond issued by China National Offshore Oil Corp. (CNOOC) last month was not only oversubscribed 14 times but was priced at the lowest yield achieved so far this year by any Asian company, largely the result of big demand for such...