Buckee said on Monday that Talisman plans to reveal later this week "a relatively modest acquisition" to move into a new region. While declining to give details, he did say it would not involve another politically sensitive country.
Asked if Talisman would stay away from hotspots, Buckee replied: "We don't need more of them at the moment."
Reuters, June 18
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Buckee said Monday that his cash-rich company is close to announcing a new, "relatively modest" acquisition that would give Talisman a new core-area of development.
"It has the elements that we like, where there is development potential in the very near term," he said.
And while not naming the country involved, Buckee hinted that it was in a politically safe area, unlike Sudan.
Canadian Press, June 18
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Buckee declined to give an estimate of how much the firm would want for its 25 percent stake in the Greater Nile Petroleum Operating Co., which runs a concession producing 200,000 barrels of oil a day in Sudan.
He also refused to identify any potential buyers, although analysts have long speculated that European giant TotalFinaElf SA could be interested if the lucrative asset goes on the block.
Brian Prokop, an analyst with Calgary brokerage Peters & Co, estimated the Sudan property could fetch between US$650 million and US$1 billion.
Reuters, June 18
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Buckee did not say outright that Talisman's Sudan property was for sale, but admitted there's a variety of suitors at his door.
"We have had a number of people approach us about those assets, and those people obviously are going to be people who are not really concerned about what the U.S. is doing," he said.
It has long been speculated that the Chinese would be eager and willing to buy up Talisman's share.
And Buckee told analysts that "all of our existing assets are potentially for sale."
Canadian Press, June 18
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My comment:
Talisman's new core-area of development in a politically safe area = Malaysia? |
