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EU: Merger creates the world’s biggest private energy company

By  |  May 1, 2019

The multibillion-euro merger will make the newly formed Wintershall DEA Europe’s largest independent oil and gas group, reported the Financial Times.

BASF said on Wednesday that the necessary approvals for the deal had been received. The companies had combined sales of €5.7bn in 2018 and an output of 215m barrels of oil equivalent.

The deal was spearheaded by John Browne, who chairs DEA, which is owned by LetterOne, the investment vehicle of Russian billionaire Mikhail Fridman. Lord Browne, who was previously chief executive of BP, said at the time of the announcement that scale has become more important than ever in the oil and gas industry.

“Very rarely do you have the opportunity to create a company of this scale and quality,” Lord Browne said on Wednesday. “Wintershall DEA will hit the ground running, with a project pipeline that will deliver market-leading growth in the years to come.”

Full Content: Financial Times

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