Chinese oil giant CNOOC Ltd. plans to acquire the Canadian oil company Nexen Inc. (NYSE: NXY). Nexen announced today that that the deal will value its stocks at $27.50 and the entire acquisition will cost CNOOC $15.1 billion in cash.
Nexen's current operations include development of shale oil projects in British Columbia and exploration and development in the Gulf of Mexico. Nexen's Calgary headquarters will become CNOOC's new North and Central American base of operations.
CNOOC plans on retaining Nexen's current management teams and employees. The current deal is expected to be completed by the end of 2012, but requires the approval of regulators in both Canada and the United States. Nexen shares are soaring on this news, the stock is up over 53% to $26.03. For more coverage and analysis of the business world follow us on Twitter @FNNOnline.