Posted on 09/24/2007 4:50:53 PM PDT by familyop
On Monday PrimeWest took off after it announced it was being acquired by an United Arab Emirates-government fund, making it the latest western asset sold to a Mid-East-based firm.
Canada's PrimeWest Energy Trust (nyse: PWI - news - people ) soared 32.1%, or $6.40, to $26.33 in late-morning trading after Abu Dhabi National Energy Company announced it entered into a deal to acquire PrimeWest for $26.75 per share, or $2.4 billion, for a total of $5 billion, including debt.
PrimeWest is a Calgary-based oil and gas royalty trust that acquires, develops, produces, and sells national gas, crude oil, and natural gas liquids for the generation of monthly cash distributions to shareholders.
The actual deal was transacted by Abu Dhabi's Canadian subsidiaries TAQA North and 1350849 Alberta.
“This acquisition makes TAQA North one of the top 14 producers in Canada,” said Peter Barker Homek, TAQA’s chief executive. "And an achievement of our strategy to grow to $20 billion in Canadian assets."
Once completed, the deal will provide TAQA with an additional reserve of 285 million barrels, current production of approximately 61,000 barrels of oil per day, an undeveloped land base of over 1.1 billion net acres, and a large tax pool position of approximately $2.7 billion.
This is the latest in a series of deals involving Middle Eastern groups, flush with high oil-prices, that have moved into western assets to diversify.
On Thursday, Borse Dubai, the one-month-old Middle Eastern exchange announced it had a 20% stake in Nasdaq, and a 28% stake in the London Stock Exchange (See “Nasdaq Finds Road To Scandinavia Via Dubai”).
Also on Thursday came the news that private-equity firm the Carlyle Group sold a 7.5% stake in its management operations for $1.35 billion to Mubadala, an investment arm of the government of Abu Dhabi.
Also on Thursday, the Qatar Investment Authority said it acquired a 20% stake in the London Stock Exchange, leaving the LSE almost half owned by Arab governments.
Founded in 2005, TAQA is majority-owned by the government of oil-rich Abu Dhabi, the largest and wealthiest of the seven emirates making up the UAE.
Just under a quarter--24.9%--of TAQA's shares is traded on the Abu Dhabi Stock Exchange, while the rest is owned by the emirate's government.
In mid-August, the UAE energy investment company acquired Northrock Resources in mid-August, from the U.S.-based Pogo Producing Company (nyse: PPP - news - people ) for $2 billion, and subsequently changed its name to TAQA North.
TAQA North also recently signed an agreement with Pioneer International Resources for $540 million in a deal to acquire its Canadian subsidiaries Pioneer National Resources Canada, Pioneer National Resources Canada, and Pioneer Canada.
Stelmach in mess of his own making [Big tax hike on Alberta oil sands.]
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/1901626/posts
Should this be a surprise? The Arabs are making an absolute killing (no pun intended) off of the raging oil prices (you know the ones - the prices that the OPEC criminals keep saying is “too high”...). They are awash in cash and are investing by buying up interests all over the West.
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