DNO’s grip on Faroe tightens

Norwegian oil explorer DNO announced it had acquired 72% of Faroe Petroleum as its grip tightens on the firm.

After acquiring a controlling 52% stake earlier this week, DNO acquired a further 20% yesterday, announcing that Faroe “had a good run”. It followed a “final offer” of £1.60 per share, valuing the firm at £641.7million, which Faroe advised shareholders to accept along with its directors.

Should DNO acquire 75%, it intends to de-list Faroe from the London stock exchange, but will retain the company’s Aberdeen headquarters.

DNO executive chairman Bijan Mossavar-Rahmani said: “We have stated from the outset that we firmly believe that Faroe’s assets, the substantial part of which are Norwegian, will be well placed in the bosom

“Faroe had a good run.The baton now passes to DNO”

of DNO, Norway’s oldest independent oil and gas company. We have also repeatedly stated that DNO attaches great importance to retaining the knowledge and expertise of the Faroe team whom, we believe, in partnership with DNO can extract increasing value from the Faroe assets.

“It is in the nature of our industry that entrepreneurs with vision, fortitude and a dollop of luck can create small, successful companies that are in time sold to larger ones with greater managerial and operational depth and stronger financial firepower and which, in turn, are swallowed by even larger companies.

“Faroe had a good run. The baton now passes to DNO.”

DNO’s offer is expected to become unconditional today and will close on February 6.