Ophir Energy turns down £343m offer from suitor MedcoEnergi

Ophir Energy today rejected a £343 million bid from Indonesia’s MedcoEnergi, saying the offer “undervalues” the company.

The London-listed energy explorer, which is being advised by Morgan Stanley and Investec, said the board was unanimous in rebuffing the 48.5p-per-share bid made on January 11.

Ophir, listed on the FTSE, saw its shares fall 2.5% to 44p after rejecting the offer.

MedcoEnergi has until January 28 to table another bid. The group, founded in 1980, has twice approached Ophir with all-cash offers previously worth £410 million in October and £380 million in December.

The lower bids were due to the oil price decline and talks over how to value one of Ophir’s assets based in Equatorial Guinea.

The firm, led by interim chief executive Alan Booth since May 2018, has a scheduled trading update tomorrow.

It owns several oil and gas field stakes in Myanmar, Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia, as well as Africa and Mexico.

MedcoEnergi is listed on the Indonesia stock exchange and is led by company veteran Hilmi Panigoro.