Foreign investment in Aotearoa/New Zealand

Overseas Investment Office – January 2016 Decision Released In Full

Takeover Attempts On NZ Oil & Gas

In January 2016, Zeta Resources Ltd (General Provincial Life Pension Fund (L) Ltd, Malaysia 46.5%; various overseas 21.8%; various public 18.7%; Foreign & Colonial Asset Management clients, UK 9.5%; ICM Limited, Bermuda 3.5%) has consent to acquire up to 100% of the shares of energy explorer New Zealand Oil & Gas Ltd (NZOG) from existing shareholders, with the cost to be notified once the takeover offer is made. The OIO states that Zeta Resources is an investor in the natural resources sector, particularly oil and gas and intends making this takeover offer to expand its investment portfolio. The transaction satisfied the s.18 criteria of the Overseas Investment Act 2005.

On 18 September 2017 NBR reported that ASX-listed Zeta Resources’ partial offer of 72c per share was rejected as “inadequate”, based on a 78-93 cent valuation by Northington Partners which NZOG’s independent directors commissioned. OG Oil and Gas, the oil and gas arm of the Ofer Global Group (Singapore), is now offering 77 cents a share for a maximum of 70% of NZOG (NBR, 18/9/17).

Stuff (13/9/17) reports that Zeta is NZOG’s largest shareholder; OG O&G has 4.3% and is owned by Monaco-based Ofer Global (real estate, hotels, oil and gas production), and Eyal Ofer, son of Israeli shipping mogul Sammy Ofer. Stuff also reports that NZOG recently sold two of its biggest assets: its 15% stake in the Kupe oilfield to Genesis Energy for $168m, and its 27.5% in the Tui oilfields to a Malaysian-based energy giant Tamarind for just over $1m (Stuff 10/8/17). NZOG reported a $27.6 million loss in the six months to December 2015, writing down the value of its Tui and Maari oilfields as world oil prices more than halved over the previous year (RNZ 29/2/16).

Campaign Against Foreign Control of Aotearoa,
P.O. Box 2258
Christchurch.