Speculation has resurfaced that oil and gas company Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX:WPL) is again being sized up as a takeover target.
The reignited rumours come as Woodside yesterday revealed Royal Dutch Shell’s stake in the company has dropped to 23.3 per cent over the past year.
Shell sold almost a third of its Woodside stake at the end of 2010 for $US3.3 billion, amid reports it decided to sell because of the belief that Australian regulators would never allow the Dutch company to acquire all of Woodside.
BHP Billiton Limited (ASX:BHP) has been tipped as a potential bidder for Woodside given the global miner’s ambitions to expand its petroleum interests.
According to The Australian, Shell’s chief financial officer, Simon Henry, says the company wanted to exit the Woodside share register but would only sell "at the right price".
In the 2011 financial year Woodside Petroleum reported a net profit of $1.42 billion.
