Canada’s Oil Deals Falling Most Since 2003 as Crude Rallies

Purchases of Canadian energy companies and assets are slackening as crude hovers near $100 a barrel and natural gas languishes after a three-year rout.

The gain in oil has made prices for oil reserves more expensive, limiting potential buyers, while analysts forecast natural gas will stay below $6 per million British thermal units for the next three years, less than half the July 2008 peak. A total of 231 million barrels of oil and gas reserves have been sold this year through May 18, less than half the 482 million barrels in the same period in 2010, according to National Bank Financial Inc.

The value of oil and gas deals in Canada -- which rivals Mexico as the U.S.’s biggest foreign oil supplier -- plunged 35 percent to $11 billion through June 15, the biggest drop since 2003, data compiled by Bloomberg show. The merger slowdown, which also affects the U.S., is having a deeper impact in Canada because energy accounts for almost 7 percent of gross domestic product, according to the Energy Council of Canada.

“It’s a much more selective buyer and seller environment,” said Trevor Loose, an investment banker with National Bank in Calgary.

The energy industry represents 4.6 percent of the U.S. economy.

Gas prices are set to remain near record low levels for the coming years, making it difficult for companies to recoup their investments, especially for smaller companies, Loose said.
Crude Rises

Crude-oil futures touched a 31-month high of $114.83 a barrel on May 2 and have gained 24 percent in the past year. Oil for July delivery rose 0.2 percent on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Gas prices have fallen 1.8 percent this year and are about a third of their peak of $13.58 in July 2008.

Gains in the price of crude over the past 12 months followed by a recent decline have made “a few people nervous,” said Michael Black, a Calgary-based partner with law firm Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP who advises companies on energy deals.

“Demand growth in China and the U.S. is also uncertain and this helps pile on the negative views.” That may limit the potential for transactions this year, Black said.

Prices for oil assets in Alberta, Canada’s energy-rich province, have soared. The average price per acre has risen to C$3,110.85 from a previous high of C$2,185.03 in July 2010, the government said on June 1. Alberta sells leases to land to fossil-fuel developers.
PetroChina, Encana

The largest energy deal in Canada in 2011 has been PetroChina Co.’s acquisition of Encana Corp. (ECA)’s natural-gas assets in British Columbia’s Horn River region. Excluding the C$5.4 billion ($5.5 billion) deal announced in February, the overall value of transactions is down by a third, according to National Bank figures, compared with same period last year.

RBC Capital Markets leads banks working on Canadian oil and gas transactions this year, with 10 deals valued at $6.5 billion. That compares with $5.7 billion for Jefferies Group Inc., according to Bloomberg data.

While transactions have slowed, there are still several targets that may be attractive for potential buyers, said Chris Damas, a Barrie, Ontario-based analyst with BCMI Research. Takeover candidates include Meg Energy Corp., Athabasca Oil Sands Corp. and Nexen Inc. (NXY), he said.

“Nexen is a value play,” Damas said. “There is no significant shareholder and there would likely be no contest if someone stepped in to buy. It’s basically on sale.”

Patti Lewis, a Nexen spokeswoman, did not return calls from Bloomberg seeking comment.
Alberta’s Reserves

Nexen, valued at about C$10.8 billion, and partner Opti Canada Inc. (OPC) have failed to meet production targets at their Long Lake oil-sands project, the company has said, contributing to a 10 percent decline in Nexen’s shares this year.

While transactions have been slow this year, sales of oil and gas assets will likely attract foreign buyers in the coming years, Alberta Energy Minister Ron Liepert said in a May 17 interview in New York.

With 173 billion barrels of recoverable reserves of oil, the third-largest in the world after Saudi Arabia and Venezuela, Alberta offers access to energy resources on a scale not available anywhere else in the world, he said, even with higher extraction costs compared with conventional reserves.

“What you’re going to see is continued Asian investment partners,” Liepert said, referring to the PetroChina purchase of Encana assets.
Oil Sands

The Canadian Energy Research Institute expects Canada’s oil sands to attract C$2.08 trillion in investments over the next 25 years, making it the largest engineering undertaking on earth. Chinese investors may contribute significantly to that investment in the coming years, said Wenran Jiang, a University of Alberta professor and senior fellow at the Asia Pacific Foundation.

“So far China’s overseas M&A investment has been really small,” Jiang said in an interview. “The Chinese would love to get into the Canadian energy market.” Though they’re “not willing to buy at any price.”

Encana and Cenovus Energy Inc. (CVE) have both said they’re looking for partners to help develop their gas and oil resources. Cenovus, Canada’s fifth-largest energy company, is discussing partnership opportunities with companies from Asia, the U.S. and Canada for a deal worth “billions” of dollars, Chief Executive Officer Brian Ferguson said in an April 27 interview.
Total, Suncor

Total S.A. concluded an agreement worth C$1.75 billion in December with Suncor Energy Inc. to jointly develop bitumen reserves in Alberta.

“We need to share because it’s cheaper,” said Total S.A. Chief Executive Officer Christophe de Margerie in Calgary on May 19.

The partnership, which provides Europe’s third-biggest oil producer with 200,000 barrels per day of production by 2020, may be a harbinger of agreements between other companies.

Korea National Oil Corp. said March 21 it would pay $1.55 billion to Anadarko Petroleum Corp. (APC) for a joint-venture stake in the Eagle Ford shale-rock formation in Texas.

On June 2, Petronas Nasional Bhd, Malaysia’s state-owned oil company, made its entry into Canada by agreeing to pay Progress Energy Resources Corp. (PRQ) as much as C$1.07 billion for stakes in natural-gas fields that may eventually be able to export the fuel to Asia.

Before deals pick up, oil prices may have to fall, said BCMI Research’s Damas. “Buyers need to see light at the end of the tunnel.”

40 Aussie oil and gas exploration firms keen on investing in PH—DoE

MANILA, Philippines—At least 40 prominent Australian oil and gas exploration companies have expressed strong and keen interest in investing in the Philippine upstream oil and gas industry, a favorable start for the government’s international road show for the Philippine Energy Contracting Round (PECR 4).

These interested companies include Shell, Apache, Chevron, AWT International, Black Swan, CalEnergy, Cue Energy Resources, ENI Australia, Exxon, Neon Energy, Otto Energy, Woodside, Anglican Resources PLC and Tap Oil, Energy Undersecretary Jose M. Layug Jr. said.

“The investor interest is overwhelming and everybody is keenly awaiting the availability of the DoE technical data for their immediate evaluation. We were pleasantly surprised with the turnout despite the short notice,” Layug noted.

“This is a validation of continuing international confidence in the Aquino administration. We hope this will result in new oil and gas discoveries within Philippine territory. It comes at an appropriate time especially with the current high oil price environment,” added Energy Secretary Jose Rene D. Almendras.

The Australian roadshow held last May 23 was a kick-off event to promote the official launch of the PECR 4 this coming June 30. The DoE has also scheduled roadshows in Singapore, Houston and London. This early, many investors have already registered for the Singapore and London presentations and have been awaiting information pertaining to the blocks to be offered, Layug said.

PECR 4 formed part of President Aquino’s long-term plans to address the Philippines’ need for oil and gas and to reduce the country’s dependence on costly imported oil.

This platform provides for transparent and competitive system of tendering onshore and offshore oil and gas blocks for exploration to interested oil and gas companies. Under this process, the Department of Energy will determine the winning bidders based on specific technical, legal and financial criteria, after which the President of the Philippines will have to award the service contracts.

As many as 15 contracts for the exploration, development and production of prospective oil and gas sites may likely be auctioned off. These areas span across 7.92 million hectares of areas in Cagayan, Central Luzon, Northwest Palawan, Mindoro-Cuyo basin, East Palawan and Cotabato. Northwest Palawan is home to the Malampaya deep water gas-to-power project, the largest and most successful natural gas industrial project in Philippine history.

Layug stressed the need to develop these new areas as the demand for oil in the Philippines has been estimated at 300,000 barrels per day. The entry of new companies that would venture into exploring and developing the country’s indigenous resources would reduce its dependence on imported petroleum products, he explained.

EPL paying $201.5 million for petroleum properties

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Energy Partners Ltd. agreed Thursday to pay $201.5 million to buy producing oil and natural wells in the Gulf of Mexico

The New Orleans-based independent energy producer is acquiring the sites, located in the shallow water in the central Gulf of Mexico, from Anglo-Suisse Offshore Partners, a privately held independent producer based in Houston.

EPL said the wells are currently producing about 3,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day, about 92 percent of which is oil. The properties are in the vicinity of EPL's core operations in the South Timbalier and East Bay regions off the southeastern Louisiana coast.

EPL chief executive Gary Hanna said his company reviewed many possible acquisitions and settled on Thursday's deal "allows us to conservatively leverage our currently debt-free balance sheet." The purchase "fits perfectly" with EPL's other properties, Hanna said.

In 2009, EPL underwent bankruptcy reorganization after it was hit by sharply lower petroleum prices, production interruptions stemming from hurricane damage, the collapse of credit markets and debt problems. Read more

The new MMHE MD CEO

KUALA LUMPUR: The managing director and chief executive officer (CEO) of Malaysia Marine and Heavy Engineering Holdings Bhd (MMHE) Wan Yusoff bin Wan Hamat is resigning with effect from Feb 1.

A company statement said on Friday, Jan 14 that he will take up a new appointment within the Petroliam Nasional Bhd group (Petronas) where he will heading a major project development in Malaysia.

Taking over from Wan Yusoff is an executive committee member of Technip, Dominique de Soras, who is'' an executive committee member of Technip, the strategic investor of MMHEc that holds 8% of its issued share capital.

'The appointment was approved by the board in view of de Soras's technical credentials and extensive experience in the oil and gas industry, and to further support the collaboration between MMHE and Technip,' MMHE said.

Mr De Soras was a Technip Senior Vice President of the newly-created Subsea Division.

Read The EDGE