CNOOC may seek cut in govt stake
(Shenzhen Daily/Agencies)
Updated: 2005-10-28 10:05

China's top offshore oil producer, CNOOC Ltd., may ask the government to cut its stake in the company to remove an obstacle to overseas acquisitions, the Financial Times reported Thursday.

In an interview with the British newspaper, the company's chief executive Fu Chengyu said it was “very likely” that it could ask the government to reduce its stake as part of an overseas deal.

CNOOC's listed unit dropped an unsolicited US$18.5 billion bid for U.S. oil firm Unocal in August after fierce political opposition.

“Everyone thinks because we are a government-owned company, we are government-run. That is not the case,” he was quoted as saying. “The perception is very important. If you want to change the perception, you have to do a lot of things.”

He said one idea would be for the government to retain a “golden share” which would allow it to veto takeovers of strategically important companies.

Fu told the paper CNOOC had no deals in the pipeline, but said the government was increasingly responsive to ideas about its shareholding.

“The government officials are more realistic than before. They understand how to create value through their assets,” he told the newspaper.

No one could be reached for comment at CNOOC's Beijing office.