RAK Petroleum Public Company Limited and DNO International ASA recently announced that shareholders have now approved their merger and the transaction is on schedule to close in early 2012.
Overwhelming favour
RAK Petroleum shareholders voted overwhelmingly in favour of the merger at a specially convened meeting in Ras Al Khaimah, UAE, after DNO shareholders voted in favour with a 76.5 per cent majority in Oslo, Norway on 1 November.
Share value
The transaction values RAK Petroleum's MENA operating subsidiaries at US$250mn and DNO International at US$.64bn, corresponding to US$1.69 per share. As RAK Petroleum already has a 30 per cent stake in DNO, the additional 153,422,343 consideration shares will increase RAK Petroleum's holding in DNO to 42.8 per cent. However, RAK Petroleum has agreed to return its holding to 30 percent in a manner at its discretion before the end of 2012.
Assessment
The number of shares to be issued was determined through a relative valuation process based on an independent assessment of the two companies' oil and gas assets by international petroleum consultants DeGolyer & MacNaughton and preparation of Competent Person's Reports.
Oil reserves
Based on the 30 June 2011 working interest basis figures provided by DeGolyer & MacNaughton, DNO International´s net remaining proven and probable reserves consisted of 355 million barrels of oil equivalent in Kurdistan Region of Iraq and Yemen, while RAK Petroleum's net remaining proven and probable reserves consisted of 52 million barrels of oil equivalent in Oman and the United Arab Emirates.
