Eni,
BP studying bid for Spanish group Repsol: report
Repsol headquarters
in Madrid
AFP
MADRID
Petroleumworld.com
02 07 06
The Italian energy group Eni and BP of Britain were studying takeover
bids for Repsol Monday as the Spanish government's golden share
in the oil and gas group expired, the newspaper El Mundo reported,
citing unnamed market sources.
The expiration of the golden share opened the door for a bid without
having to seek permission by the Spanish government. That, coupled
with a recent decline in Repsol's stock price made the company
a ripe takeover target, the newspaper said.
Total of France and US major ExxonMobil are also rumoured to be
eyeing the Spanish oil and gas group, the newspaper noted.
Separately however, the Spanish financial daily Expansion said
that the Argentine government which controls 0.1 percent of Repsol
had the right to veto any operation that would lead to a change
in the company's control.
The Spanish savings bank La Caixa is Repsol's leading shareholder
with a 12.5 percent stake.
A BP spokeswoman in London declined to comment on the article.
"It's just market speculation," she told AFP's financial
news subsidiary AFX News.
That sentiment was echoed by an Eni spokesman: "We do not
comment on rumors and reports in the press."
AFP
02 06 06
Copyright
© 2006 AFP. All rights reserved
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