After revealing in January that it had been approached by a still-unnamed potential acquirer, fast-growing North Sea oil producer Ithaca Energy has confirmed that it has "received unsolicited interest from a number of third parties".
Such interest is not surprising considering Ithaca is looking to bring into production two projects that would lift its net output to over 20,000 barrels of oil per day by 2013. From current daily production of around 5,000 barrels, that's a big increase in turnover and profits – and one that demands a share price uplift from pre-approach levels.
Ithaca plans to hold discussions with all bona fide interested parties, which broker RBC Capital Markets speculates are likely to include EnQuest, KNOC/Dana and Abu Dhabi's national oil company, TAQA.
