Shareholders of Canadian oil firm Nexen will vote next week on a £9.6billion deal which would see the firm taken over by China’s national offshore oil firm.
The acquisition would see the China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) take control of a tranche of Canadian oilsand projects plus the Buzzard development – one of the largest producing oil fields in the North Sea – and the £2billion Golden Eagle project.
Even after Thursday’s vote, the deal – which needs two-thirds of shareholders’ support to go through – still faces hurdles.
A spokeswoman for Nexen said: “Completion of the transaction is subject to many closing conditions, including court approval and receiving the applicable government and regulatory approvals.”
Last week, the Press and Journal reported that CNOOC had formally asked the US government to review the proposed takeover for any national security concerns.
About 10% of Nexen’s assets are in the US, but a spokesman for CNOOC said the proposed deal did not threaten US security. The acquisition is also the subject of a Canadian review.
CNOOC’s takeover of Nexen was announced on the same day Sinopec agreed to buy 49% of Talisman’s UK business for £956million, creating a joint-venture company.
The firm said this deal was expected to close in the fourth quarter of this year, depending on UK Government and regulatory approval.
Both deals come as China is due to undergo a change of leadership, with president-in-waiting Xi Jinping ready to take over at the Communist Party next month.
Analysts said it was too early to say if the move would signal a change in China’s energy policy.
While state-linked, China’s oil firms have grown to be more commercially driven than state-controlled, according to Philip Andrews-Speed, an associate fellow at Chatham House.
This has come as China has switched from being a major exporter of oil to become a growing importer with its oil firms building portfolios of overseas assets.