Spain’s Repsol has used its pre-emption right to take 6/10 of Italian firm Edison’s 11.25% stake in Algeria’s 2.9bcm/y Reggane Nord project, leaving Germany’s Wintershall Dea with 4/10 of a deal which was originally set to see Wintershall take Edison’s entire stake (MEES, 6 May).
As such Sonatrach’s two remaining foreign partners at Reggane Nord see their stakes rise in proportion with their current shareholdings, leaving Repsol with 36% and Wintershall 24%. Had the original deal gone ahead Wintershall would have seen its stake rise from 19.5% to 30.75% overtaking Repsol’s 29.25% as lead foreign partner – evidently a no-no for the Spanish firm. (CONTINUED - 225 WORDS)