Talisman Energy

Last updated
Talisman Energy Inc.
Industry Petroleum
Predecessor BP Canada
Founded1 January 1993 (1993-01-01)
Defunct21 December 2015 (2015-12-21)
FateAcquired by Repsol
SuccessorRepsol Oil and Gas Canada
Headquarters Bankers Hall,
Calgary, Alberta

Talisman Energy Inc. was a Canadian independent petroleum company that existed between 1993 and 2015. The company was created from the assets of BP Canada after British Petroleum divested its 57 percent stake in June 1992. It was one of Canada's largest independent oil and gas companies, and operated globally, with operations in Canada (B.C., Alberta, Ontario, Saskatchewan, Quebec) and the United States of America (Pennsylvania, New York, Texas ) in North America; Colombia, South America; Algeria in North Africa; United Kingdom and Norway in Europe; Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, Papua New Guinea, East Timor and Australia in the Far East; and Kurdistan in the Middle East. Talisman Energy has also built the offshore Beatrice Wind Farm [1] in the North Sea off the coast of Scotland.

Contents

The company was acquired by Repsol in 2015 [2] and in January 2016 was renamed to Repsol Oil & Gas Canada Inc. [3]

The company initially grew quickly through a number of mergers and acquisitions, which reflects in the complex history and large diversity of holdings. In the 2015 Forbes Global 2000, Talisman Energy was ranked as the 1728th -largest public company in the world. [4] Talisman was the first Canadian company to join the Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights Plenary Group (Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights) [5] and is a participant in the United Nations Global Compact.

History

Background: 1925–92

The origins of Talisman energy traces to the Supertest Petroleum Corporation, which was founded in 1923 and headquartered in London, Ontario.

Supertest station in Toronto, ca. 1965 Supertest gas station Jane and Hanley Streets.jpg
Supertest station in Toronto, ca. 1965

In 1953, British Petroleum Company (BP) entered the Canadian market through the purchase of a minority stake in Calgary-based Triad Oil Company. In the early 1950s, the power struggle between oil companies and host governments in Middle East started, which hampered operations of British Petroleum in the region, and prompted it to diversify its operations beyond the heavily Middle East dependent oil production. The Canadian holding company of British Petroleum was renamed BP Canada in 1969; and in 1971, it acquired 97.8% stake of Supertest.[ citation needed ]

Subsequently, Supertest was renamed to BP Canada Ltd, and other Canadian interests of British Petroleum were amalgamated to the new company. BP retail operations disappeared from Canada in the early 1980s, when in 1982, BP Canada divested its downstream assets to Petro-Canada, which was at the time owned by the Government of Canada.[ citation needed ]

1992–2011

In 1992, British Petroleum sold off its 57% stake in BP Canada Ltd to the public. BP Canada was later renamed to Talisman Energy Inc. and one of Canada's largest independent oil and gas company was founded. After the split from British Petroleum, Talisman Energy sold off its money losing mining operations and focused on its large natural gas holdings in British Columbia, Canada.

Its subsidiary Fortuna Petroleum, became one of the first international oil companies to do business with Cuba. [6] A year later in 1993, Talisman Energy bought Encor Inc from BCE, doubling in size and becoming one of Canada's largest petroleum companies. Talisman Energy acquired Bow Valley Energy from British Gas PLC in 1994, gaining more assets in Canada and an important presence in the North Sea and Southeast Asia. In 1995, it pulled out of Cuba to focus on these areas.

In 1997, Talisman Energy launched a takeover bid of Wascana Energy, a former crown corporation of the Saskatchewan government. It got into a bidding war over Wascana with Canadian Occidental Petroleum (later, Nexen), and failed in its attempt. It continued its aggressive expansion, investing in the North Sea and Indonesia; and in 1997, bought the smaller Pembina Resources.

In 1999, Talisman Energy acquired Rigel Energy. Since then, Talisman has expanded its operation in Southeast Asia and in the North Sea, with a brief exploration operations in South Eastern Trinidad & Tobago.

On May 30, 2007, the company announced the retirement of its longtime President & CEO, James Buckee. John Manzoni, formerly of BP, was named as his successor, effective September 1, 2007. [7]

In January 2008, Talisman agreed to buy RSX Energy Inc, an oil and gas company based in Calgary, Alberta focused on exploration and development in Western Canada. Formed in 1997 as Royal Sovereign Exploration Inc. it changed its name to RSX Energy in 2002. [8]

2012

In July 2012, Talisman Energy sold part of its interests in Britain to focus on higher-growth shale gas projects in North America and Southeast Asia. A joint venture with China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation Limited (or Sinopec) was announced, that saw Talisman sell 49% of its Aberdeen, Scotland-based North Sea business to Sinopec for US$1.5 billion. [9] [10]

On September 10, 2012, the company announced that John Manzoni had agreed to step down as president and CEO, effective immediately, and would be replaced by board member Hal Kvisle. Kvisle had been on Talisman's board of directors since 2010 and was previously CEO of Canadian pipeline builder TransCanada Corp. between 2001 and 2010. [11] The news surprised market analysts and fueled speculation that Talisman was then a greater potential takeover target, similar to that of industry peer Nexen Inc. when it agreed to a $15.1 billion acquisition made by China National Offshore Oil Co. two months earlier. However, Kvisle stressed that he and the board would be focused on making Talisman a "sustainable long-term, successful Canadian company" rather than putting it up for sale. [12]

2013

In October 2013, activist investor Carl Icahn acquired around 61 million shares in the company and announced he would be seeking a place on the board. His acquisition prompted the firm's share price to rocket by 16% before ultimately plummeting 60% over the course of 2014 before Icahn divested. [13] [14]

Acquisition by Repsol 2014-2015

Following months of speculation and negotiations, Spanish energy company Repsol tendered an offer to buy Talisman in early December 2014 for US$ 8 per share. [15] [16] Including debt obligations of US$ 5 billion, the deal was worth US$ 13.1 billion. [17] On February 19, 2015, Talisman shareholders approved the acquisition offer from Repsol with 99 percent of shareholders in each class voting in favor of the deal. [2]

In January 2016, Repsol announced that the legal name of Talisman would be changed to Repsol Oil & Gas Canada Inc. effective January 1, 2016. [3]

Controversy in Sudan

In 1998, Talisman made one of its most controversial moves when it purchased Arakis Energy. The acquired business had involvement in the Sudanese oil industry through a 25% interest in the Greater Nile Oil project operated by the Greater Nile Petroleum Operating Company (GNPOC). Further, GNPOC was a consortium which included Sinopec, the national petroleum company of China (40%); Petronas, the national oil company of Malaysia (30%); and Sudapet, the national petroleum company of Sudan (5%). [18]

At the time, the Second Sudanese Civil War was under way and the government of Sudan was almost totally reliant on oil revenues for its war effort. This war effort was repeatedly accused of war crimes, human rights abuses, and genocide. [19] International observers accused the Sudanese government of forcibly displacing residents to make way for oil exploration and exploitation. As conditions in Sudan worsened, an international outcry developed led by NGOs and churches. They called for divestment in Talisman shares and pushed the Canadian government to penalize the company. As part of this protest, the Presbyterian Church of Sudan sued the company in an American court for genocide, stating that Talisman had helped Sudanese officials "bomb churches, kill church leaders and attack villages in an effort to clear the way for oil exploration." [20]

In an unprecedented event, an American judge decided the lawsuit was valid, but it was later dismissed by the US District Court for the Southern District of New York. The court concluded that the plaintiffs had no admissible evidence to support the claims against Talisman Energy. [21] The finding in the U.S. lawsuit is consistent with the report of the Harker mission in 2000, which admonished Talisman for not doing enough to stop human rights abuses by other groups, but did not find that Talisman had actively aided in any atrocities. [18] In response to the allegations, Talisman initiated an annual third-party verified, "Corporate Responsibility Report" and implementing procedures for monitoring the company's compliance with the International Code of Ethics for Canadian Business. [22]

In 2003, Talisman Energy divested the Sudan interest acquired through the Arakis acquisition, selling its complete 25% stake to Indian company ONGC Videsh. [23] Whether this divestiture benefited the people of Sudan is highly questionable, with concern having been raised by one NGO active in the region: "If you pressure Talisman to leave Sudan then will the remaining actors take any action to address these critical issues? At least Talisman has taken notice and responded ...". [22] Talisman's chief executive Jim Buckee was quoted by the BBC saying "It has been very difficult for us to operate [in Sudan], in the event of signing a peace agreement, we will come back to Sudan." [23]

Leadership

President

  1. Dr James William Buckee, 1993–2007
  2. Sir John Alexander Manzoni, 2007–2012
  3. Harold Norman Kvisle, 2012–2015

Chairman of the Board

  1. David Anthony Claydon, 1993
  2. Stuart Keith McWalter, 1993–1996
  3. Peter Nigel Tinling Widdrington, 1996–2001
  4. David Evan Powell, 2001–2003
  5. Douglas Daniel Baldwin, 2003–2009
  6. Charles Ross Williamson, 2009–2015

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Repsol</span> Spanish multinational energy and petrochemical company

Repsol S.A. is a Spanish multinational energy and petrochemical company based in Madrid. It is engaged in worldwide upstream and downstream activities. In the 2022 Forbes Global 2000, Repsol was ranked as the 320th-largest public company in the world. As of 2022, it has 24,000 employees worldwide.

OMV is an Austrian multinational integrated oil, gas and petrochemical company which is headquartered in Vienna, Austria. The company is listed on the Vienna Stock Exchange. In the 2021 Forbes Global 2000, OMV Group was ranked as the 413th -largest public company in the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sinopec</span> Chinese oil and gas enterprise

China Petroleum and Chemical Corporation, or Sinopec, is a Chinese oil and gas enterprise based in Beijing. It is listed in Hong Kong and also trades in Shanghai.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">BP Canada</span> Canadian oil and gas company

BP Canada was a Canadian petroleum company and subsidiary of British Petroleum that existed between 1955 and 1992. The name refers to a group of companies that engaged in various segments of the petroleum industry lifecycle. BP entered the Canadian market in October 1953, when it purchased a 23 percent stake in the Triad Oil Company. In 1955, BP formed a Canadian subsidiary, based in Montreal, called BP Canada Limited. The company began acquiring retail stations in Ontario and Quebec and in 1957 started construction on a refinery in Montreal. By the end of the 1950s BP Canada was a fully-integrated operation. In 1964, it acquired from Cities Service the Oakville Refinery, and then expanded its operations significantly in 1971 when it acquired Supertest Petroleum.

<i>ampm</i> US multinational convenience store chain

ampm is a convenience store chain with branches located in several U.S. states, including Arizona, California, Nevada, Oregon, Washington and in several countries such as Costa Rica and Brazil. The brand pulled out of the Eastern United States in 2012, but returned a decade later.

Invest in Canada is an arms-length Government of Canada organization that promotes and attracts foreign direct investment into Canada. It was created through the Investment Canada Act and launched on March 12, 2018 as a departmental corporation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">China National Petroleum Corporation</span> Chinese major national oil and gas corporation

The China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) is a major national oil and gas corporation of China and one of the largest integrated energy groups in the world. Its headquarters are in Dongcheng District, Beijing. CNPC was ranked fourth in 2022 Fortune Global 500, a global ranking of the largest corporations by revenue.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">APA Corporation</span> American energy company

APA Corporation is the holding company for Apache Corporation, an American company engaged in hydrocarbon exploration. It is organized in Delaware and headquartered in Houston. The company is ranked 431st on the Fortune 500.

TNK-BP was a major vertically integrated Russian oil company headquartered in Moscow. It was Russia's third-largest oil producer and among the ten largest private oil companies in the world. In 2013 it was acquired by Russian oil company Rosneft.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shaanxi Yanchang Petroleum</span> Chinese petroleum conglomerate

Shaanxi Yanchang Petroleum Group is a Chinese conglomerate mainly engaged in the exploration, production, transportation, and sale of petroleum and natural gas, and in addition the production and sales of petrochemical products. Founded in 1905, it is the fourth largest oil producer in the country. Almost all its reserves and refineries are located in Shaanxi.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Supertest Petroleum</span>

Supertest Petroleum Limited was a Canadian petroleum company that operated from 1923 to 1973. Its head office was in London, Ontario. It marketed itself as "Canada's All-Canadian Company", and was acquired by BP Canada in 1971.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">BP</span> British multinational oil and gas company

BP p.l.c. is a British multinational oil and gas company headquartered in London, England. It is one of the oil and gas "supermajors" and one of the world's largest companies measured by revenues and profits. It is a vertically integrated company operating in all areas of the oil and gas industry, including exploration and extraction, refining, distribution and marketing, power generation, and trading.

Harold Norman "Hal" Kvisle is a Canadian businessman in the petroleum industry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canadian petroleum companies</span>

Although there are numerous oil companies operating in Canada, as of 2009, the majority of production, refining and marketing was done by fewer than 20 of them. According to the 2013 edition of Forbes Global 2000, canoils.com and any other list that emphasizes market capitalization and revenue when sizing up companies, as of March 31, 2014 these are the largest Canada-based oil and gas companies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Addax Petroleum</span>

Addax Petroleum was established in 1994 and since August 2009 has been a subsidiary of the Sinopec Group, one of the largest oil and gas producers in China, the biggest oil refiner in Asia, and the third largest worldwide. Addax Petroleum was an international gas and oil production and exploration company mainly focused on the Middle East, the North Sea, and Africa. Since its founding, the company has become one of the largest oil producers in West Africa.

Cenovus Energy Inc. is a Canadian integrated oil and natural gas company headquartered in Calgary, Alberta. Its offices are located at Brookfield Place, having completed a move from the neighbouring Bow in 2019.

Gyda is an offshore oil field located in the southern Norwegian section of the North Sea, along with the Ula, Tambar and Tambar East fields making up the UGT area, usually attributed to DONG Energy's main areas of exploration and production activity. The Gyda field was discovered in 1980 and started producing on June 21, 1990. The field contains confirmed 39.6 million m3 of oil and 6.6 billion cubic meter of natural gas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Renationalization of YPF</span>

President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner of Argentina introduced a bill on April 16, 2012 for the partial renationalization of YPF, the nation's largest energy firm. The state would purchase a 51% share, with the national government controlling 51% of this package and ten provincial governments receiving the remaining 49%. The bill was overwhelmingly approved by both houses of Congress, and was signed by the president on May 5.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Manzoni</span> British Civil servant

Sir John Alexander Manzoni is a British senior civil servant and business executive, who served as chief executive of the civil service and the Cabinet Office Permanent Secretary from 2014 to 2020.

References

  1. ↑ Beatrice Wind Farm Demonstrator website
  2. 1 2 "Talisman shareholders approve $8.3 billion Repsol buy". Petro Global News. Retrieved 19 February 2015.
  3. 1 2 "Talisman Energy Inc. and Related Canadian Partnerships Announce Name Changes". BOE Report. 4 January 2016. Retrieved April 23, 2016.
  4. ↑ "Forbes Global 2000". Forbes . Retrieved 30 July 2020.
  5. ↑ Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights Plenary Group website Archived 2008-05-17 at the Wayback Machine
  6. ↑ "Funding Universe - History of Talisman Energy Inc" . Retrieved 1 September 2012.
  7. ↑ "Jim Buckee: Talisman's retired contrarian picks his next fight" . Retrieved 2020-06-30.
  8. ↑ "RSX ENERGY INC. ENTERS INTO PRE-ACQUISITION AGREEMENT WITH TALISMAN ENERGY INC" (PDF). RSX Energy. 2008-01-18.
  9. ↑ "Talisman announces North Sea stake sale to Sinopec of $1.5bn". BBC. 23 July 2012. Retrieved 2 September 2012.
  10. ↑ "Sinopec buys North Sea stake from Talisman". theglobeandmail.com. 23 July 2012. Retrieved 2 September 2012.
  11. ↑ Jameson Berkow (September 10, 2012). "Talisman CEO John Manzoni steps down; Hal Kvisle takes helm". Financial Post. Retrieved 13 September 2012.
  12. ↑ Lauren Krugel, The Canadian Press (September 12, 2012). "'For sale' sign not up at Talisman following Manzoni's departure, new CEO says". Canadian Business. Archived from the original on 16 September 2012. Retrieved 13 September 2012.
  13. ↑ Anna Driver (8 October 2013). "Talisman Energy shares surge as Carl Icahn acquires stake". Reuters.
  14. ↑ Lopez, Linette. "Carl Icahn Just Got Out Of A Tight Spot". Business Insider.
  15. ↑ Orihuela, Rodrigo; Penty, Rebecca (16 December 2014). "Repsol Agrees to Buy Canada's Talisman for $8.3 Billion". Bloomberg News.
  16. ↑ Rodriguez, Jose Elias; Toyer, Julien (16 December 2014). Day, Paul (ed.). "Spain's Repsol to buy Talisman Energy for $13 bln". Reuters .
  17. ↑ Jones, Jeffrey (15 December 2014). "Talisman Energy acquired by Repsol in $8.3-billion deal". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved December 24, 2014.
  18. 1 2 Human Security in Sudan: The Report of a Canadian Assessment Mission
  19. ↑ "Talisman oil operations prolong Sudan civil war". CBC News: Canada. Associated Press. November 11, 2000. Retrieved 4 May 2012.
  20. ↑ Aarti Maharaj (22 Aug 2011). "Canada leads global interest in CSR". Corporate Secretary. Archived from the original on 22 July 2012. Retrieved 4 May 2012.
  21. ↑ "The Presbyterian Church of Sudan v. Talisman Energy, Inc. UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE SECOND CIRCUIT" (PDF). 2 October 2009. Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 December 2010. Retrieved 8 August 2012.
  22. 1 2 CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY REPORT 2000, SUDAN OPERATIONS Archived 2011-09-28 at the Wayback Machine , Talisman CR Reports Archived 2012-02-04 at the Wayback Machine
  23. 1 2 "Talisman pulls out of Sudan". BBC News. Associated Press. 10 March 2003. Retrieved 4 May 2012.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.