Standard Chartered Private Equity (SCPE) has purchased a stake of approximately 4.2% in Salamander Energy plc.
The investment was acquired from one of Salamander’s pre-IPO investors in an off-market transaction.
“We are delighted to have become shareholders and to participate in Salamander’s growth. We have known the Salamander team for some time and respect the disciplined approach they have taken to building their business,” says Alastair Morrison, managing director, SCPE.
“Upstream exploration and production requires investors who take a medium term view of value growth and understand the risks. This deal sits well with our investment approach,” adds Morrison. “Salamander operates in a core market for Standard Chartered and with the bank’s established advisory, financing and hedging capabilities in the oil and gas sector, our equity team is expected to be increasingly active in the oil sector in future.”
Salamander has built a South East Asia-focused portfolio of oil and gas opportunities spanning production, development and frontier exploration over the last three years. The company is also developing a track record in M&A, executing asset acquisitions at attractive prices to complement its technical skills and knowledge.
In 2007 it further extended its portfolio through acquiring Production Sharing Contracts in Vietnam and Laos, farming into exploration block SC41 in the Philippines and acquiring a stake in the Simenggaris JOB in East Kalimantan. In December 2007 Salamander offered to acquire GFI Oil & Gas Corporation, a Canadian listed business with assets in South East Asia.