How does your company announce an acquisition/divestment/merger?
People in oil industry communication departments are very creative. They are very good at finding new words and phrases for the same thing and in particular for mergers, acquisitions and divestments, according to research done by Salève Energy Partners.
A database of over 25,000 press releases
Over the years I have read many press releases, articles and news reports over acquisitions, divestments and mergers in the oil and gas industry. I even maintain a database of these press releases, articles, and news reports and I have more than 25,000 of them in the database!!! (Why I maintain this data base, will become clear in a later blog post over transaction benchmarking). But I digress…..
For fun (!) I reviewed the headlines of ‘my’ press releases and I noticed that there are very many different ways to tell the outside world that a company has bought or sold an asset I wrote them all down for you. As you can see below, there are far more words and phrases for the acquisition of an asset or company than for the divestment of one (55 vs. 15). I wonder why? Maybe because an acquisition ‘sounds’ more positive than a divestment, I don’t know. Maybe you can share your thoughts on this with me in the comments below.
Acquisition words and phrases
to add
to buys
to offer USD xx for
to swap
to purchase
X signs asset exchange agreements
to farm-in
X signs agreement to jointly develop
to acquire an interest in
X and Y to form a joint venture
X to increase and consolidate position in North Sea
X to enter North Sea (by)
X to move into North Sea
to transact
X increases its position in
to increase reserves
to sign a term sheet
X to double its production
X to return to the North Sea
to exchange assets
to enter into an (purchase) agreement
to sign MoU
to expand
to expands its presence/interest in the North Sea
to pick-up acreage West of Shetland
to make an acquisition
to acquire additional equity
to earn a stake in
to up the stake
to move into the Southern North Sea
to participate in
to ink a deal
to agree to buy
to merge
to bid
to conclude a deal
to strike a deal
to join a JV
to snag
to transfer
to seal a deal
to land an asset in Dutch sector of the North Sea
to nab acreage
to grab
to cinch
to announce a strategic alliance with
to snap up
to be assigned
X diversifies into Central North Sea
X and Y agreed to develop
to strengthen its position
to enter into a LOI
to trade
to secure foothold
to assume operatorship
Divestment words and phrases
to sell
X finds a Buyer for
X is marketing
to farm-out
X seeks a partner for
X received offers for
to buy out
X raised USD xx from sale
to dispose
to spin off
to consider one’s options
to unload
to offer up
to land USD XX from deal
to agree to sell
Words and phrases that can be used in both acquisitions or divestments
to announce the acquisition/divestment of
X in talks with Y to sell/buy
X reaches an agreement to sell/buy
X confirms a deal to sell/buy
X finalizes a deal to sell/buy
to enter into talks to sell/buy
to sign an agreement/SPA/MOU/LOI to sell/buy
to complete a deal
to close a deal
I love for you to add your suggestions for words and phrases for an acquisition, divestment or merger, so please share yours in the comments below.
At Salève Energy Partners we have a lot of experience on Strategy, Business Development and Commercial issues in the oil and gas industry and if you want to know more about Salève Energy Partners and how we can be of assistance, please have a look at our website www.saleve-energy.com/expertise or contact us at info@saleve-energy.com
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About Patricia
Patricia Zegers-de-Beyl has worked in the oil industry for more than 27 years, gaining experience in business development, strategy and commercial aspects of the industry. As a seasoned Business Developer with an Engineering mindset she is passionate about applying and sharing her experience, knowledge and skills through Salève Energy Partners. Patricia has worked for several European oil companies and on projects across the globe and outside the office she enjoys doodling and building with Lego.
Patricia holds a Master’s in Petroleum Engineering from the Delft University of Technology and an MBA from The Open University.