Canada’s Cenovus Energy does not plan to raise its bid for oil sands producer MEG Energy, despite a higher offer from Strathcona Resources, its CEO Jon McKenzie told Bloomberg News on Wednesday.
Shares of MEG fell 2% to C$28.54, while Cenovus rose more than 3% to C$23.28.
The takeover saga began in May when Strathcona launched a C$5.93 billion hostile bid for MEG Energy. Cenovus countered this with a cash-and-stock agreement in August.
Since then, Strathcona has raised its stake in MEG to 14.2%, aiming to vote against the deal, and on Monday sweetened its original offer.
Strathcona’s revised offer values MEG at C$30.86 per share, compared with Cenovus’ nearly C$28 bid.
The companies are vying for MEG’s Christina Lake oil sands project, thanks to its long reserve life, low operating costs, and strong production growth potential.
It remains one of the few large-scale expansion opportunities left in the Canadian oil patch.
Cenovus, MEG and Strathcona did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comments.
(Reporting by Sumit Saha in Bengaluru; Editing by Krishna Chandra Eluri and Sriraj Kalluvila)