Shareholders of Dragon Oil will be offered 455 pence a share in cash by Emirates National Oil Company (Enoc), Dragon said in a statement today.
Dubai state-controlled Enoc has agreed to buy the 48 per cent of Dragon that it does not already own in a deal that values the Dublin and London-listed oil explorer at some €2.64 billion.
Dragon said the 455 pence/share offer represented a 34.6 per cent premium to Dragon's closing price on the last trading day before it said it had received a bid approach. In June, some analysts said a fair bid would be above £5/share, and since then oil sector shares have risen.
A committee of independent directors recommended shareholders accept the bid.
In June, Enoc said it was considering an offer for Dragon, as the company sought to expand its presence internationally, including in Turkmenistan, where Dragon operates and about which oil companies have grown increasingly interested in recent years.
Dragon Oil is an independent oil development and production company whose shares are traded on the Irish and London Stock Exchanges. The company operates in the Cheleken Contract Area oilfields off Turkmenistan in the Caspian Sea.
Reuters
