“The opportunity to acquire an additional interest at a discounted price underscores Suncor’s confidence in its position within the oil sands”, said Williams in a statement.
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The transaction is subject to closing conditions, including regulatory approval.
Located in Alberta, Canada, some 90 km north of Fort McMurray, Fort Hills has a planned capacity of 180,000 barrels per day.
In all, Suncor’s capital spending increase at Fort Hills is estimated at just over $1 billion, when both the acquisition and $700 million in future spending is taken into account. Teck has agreed to waive its right of first refusal to purchase a pro-rata share of the offering. Barclays reissued an overweight rating on shares of Suncor Energy in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. The primary factors that have impacted our rating are mixed – some indicating strength, some showing weaknesses, with little evidence to justify the expectation of either a positive or negative performance for this stock relative to most other stocks.
Suncor Energy (NYSE:SU) traded up 1.43% during trading on Wednesday, hitting $26.23. The company has a market cap of $50.32 billion and a PE ratio of 36.44. Suncor Energy has a 52 week low of $30.89 and a 52 week high of $42.98.
Suncor has acquired the additional working interest in the project for C$310 million.
The deal comes as USA crude prices hover at around US$46 a barrel – around half of where they were a year ago – with no end to the doldrums in sight.
Desjardins Capital Markets analyst Justin Bouchard said there’s a strategic element to the deal, as Suncor now has majority control of Fort Hills. The Company is focused on developing petroleum resource basins-Canada’s Athabasca oil sands. The Company operates under three segments: Oil Sands, Exploration and Production, and Refining and Marketing.
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Upon completion of the transaction scheduled in the fourth quarter of 2015, Suncor will have 50.8% stake in the $15bn Fort Hills project while Total and Teck Resources will hold 29.2% and 20% stakes respectively.
