Oil and gas exploration group Petroceltic International may be open to a takeover offer from a rival, chief executive John Craven indicated to shareholders yesterday. Gabrielle Monaghan reports.
Dublin-based Petroceltic will not "rule anything in or out," Mr Craven said, in a response to a question from an investor as to whether the company would welcome being acquired.
"You always have to have an appeal both to the market and to the industry," the chief executive said. "The next phase in the industry is consolidation - we will see a lot more deals over the next few months." The oil company's stock will begin trading on Dublin's IEX market on Monday, Petroceltic announced at its annual meeting with shareholders. The shares are already listed on the Alternative Investment Market (AIM) in London.
"Since our listing on the AIM in 2002, we have seen a lot of oil and gas companies coming to the AIM and they are all competing for funds and acreage," Mr Craven said.
Drilling operations at Petroceltic's prospect in Algeria will start on Sunday, earlier than the company expected. Drilling at the two wells in Petroceltic's Isarene Permit will probably last until October and production may begin in two to three years, according to Mr Craven. The company has a 75 per cent interest in a production-sharing contract with Sonatrach, Algeria's national oil company, for a plot in the the Sahara extending more than 10,800sq km.
