Medco Energi secures majority stake in Australia's Novus

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.