India may bid for Kazakh Oil sought by CNOOC
(Bloomberg.com)
Updated: 2006-01-13 19:08

"Lot of Bidders"

Cnooc's shares were unchanged at the close of morning trading in Hong Kong. The shares have risen 9.3 percent since the company announced the Nigerian acquisition on Jan. 9.

The company has more than 3,400 employees, primarily based in Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan. It had profit of $80.5 million on sales of $339.6 million in the first nine months of 2004.

The Karazhanbas field was discovered in the 1970s and was in decline until Nations Energy acquired it in 1997 and drilled new wells, upgraded existing wells and added new production facilities, according to the Web site. Production has grown from under 5,000 barrels per day in 1999 to average 35,154 barrels per day in 2003.

The company's proven reserves in Kazakhstan exceed 400 million barrels.

Nations Energy's Chairman, Hashim Djojohadikusumo, is a son of Sumitro Djojohadikusumo, a former Indonesian finance minister under presidents Sukarno and Suharto. Hashim, the former owner of PT Bank Niaga, is chairman of Indonesia's Tirtamas Group, a trading business.

Citigroup Inc., the world's biggest bank, is advising Cnooc while Credit Suisse Group, Switzerland's second-largest bank, is advising Nations Energy, the Standard said. Both banks declined to comment.