Thailand’s PTTEP PCL has bested a $1.58 billion offer from Royal Dutch Shell plc (NYSE: RDS-A) for British-based Cove Energy PLC. The Thai oil & gas exploration firm has announced a “possible, all-cash offer” for Cove worth about $1.8 billion.
Shell owns 8.5% of Cove’s natural gas field offshore of Mozambique in East Africa that is 35.6%-owned and operated by Anadarko Petroleum Corp. (NYSE: APC). The field is believed to hold up to 30 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.
PTTEP had previously said that it was not interested in acquiring Cove, so the new bid, at a 13% premium above Shell’s offer, came as something of a surprise. Cove anticipates receiving at least one even richer offer.