Medco Energi secures majority stake in Australia's Novus

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Publicly listed energy firm PT Medco Energi Internasional has secured a controlling stake in Australia's Novus Petroleum Ltd. after a majority of its shareholders agreed to its A$350 million bid.

In a statement released on Tuesday to the Australian Stock Exchange, Medco said 60.2 percent of Novus shareholders had thus far accepted its A$1.90 per share offer to buy the Sydney-based company.

Shareholders who accepted the offer included Novus' largest single entity shareholder, Japan-based Mitsui & Co., which owns 13 percent of Novus.

Medco shares ended higher by Rp 50 at Rp 1,350 on the Jakarta Stock Exchange after the announcement.

The bid offered by Medco was higher than its rival bidder: the Australian-based Sunov Petroleum Ltd., which raised its bid on April 22 to A$1.85 per share from A$1.77, or to A$341 million from A$326 million.

Medco -- which was founded by businessman-turned-politician Arifin Panigoro -- was eager to acquire Novus and its natural gas reserves in Brantas, East Java, which recorded last year a high production volume of 64 million cubic feet per day.

Medco once said it would switch to producing gas instead of oil, in light of the continuing decline in its oil reserves.