CNOOC says no plan to raise bid for Unocal
(Agencies/cri)
Updated: 2005-07-20 20:36

China's third largest oil producer CNOOC, said on Thursday it will not raise its bid to take over the US oil company Unocal for the sake of protecting its shareholders' interests.

Earlier on Wednesday, Unocal's board of directors recommended that shareholders accept a 17 billion US dollar takeover offer by larger oil producer Chevron Corporation.

CNOOC said in a statement that it regrets that Unocal did not take up its offer and that it will continue to monitor the market.

CNOOC added that it considers its full-cash offer of US$67 per share is still superior, even after Chevron raised its bid.

According to the latest news from the Unocal website, Chevron raised its offer late on Tuesday to 63 US dollars per share made up of 40 percent in cash and 60 percent in stock.

CNOOC last month proposed a merger with Unocal, offering 18.5 billion US dollars in total for Unocal's shares.

Unocal board endorses sweetened Chevron offer

Unocal's board of directors has endorsed a sweetened, $17 billion takeover bid from Chevron, rejecting a higher offer from a Chinese oil firm, CNOOC.

China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) headquarters in Beijing. CNOOC insisted that its bid for Unocal was the best. [AFP]

The decision by Unocal's board late Tuesday could signal an end to the CNOOC's bid for the Unocal Corp.

Chevron boosted its offer by $2 per share to $63 per share — or $17 billion overall — shortly before the Unocal board met Tuesday night. CNOOC Ltd., an affiliate of China National Offshore Oil Corp., has an $18.5 billion offer on the table for the El Segundo-based company. Unocal's board had previously also endorsed Chevron's lower offer over the higher CNOOC bid.

In a joint statement with Chevron, Unocal's board urged stockholders late Tuesday to accept the amended bid at a shareholders' meeting scheduled for Aug. 10.

But a spokesman for China's third-largest oil company vowed early Wednesday that CNOOC was not ready to drop out of the bidding war.

"The situation with us is that we have what we consider a clearly superior, full-cash offer on the table, and it remains there," said CNOOC spokesman Ray Bashford in Hong Kong. "We're willing to continue negotiations."

David J. O'Reilly, Chevron's chairman and chief executive officer, said the revised bid was a "compelling transaction for Chevron stockholders" despite the higher price tag.

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