Sovereign-wealth fund China Investment Corp (CIC) will invest US$300 million in a complex deal that will see Hong Kong-listed Kaisun Energy take over Russian oil producer Nobel Holdings Investments, the Wall Street Journal reported. The deal appears to be a way for the Russian company to list in Hong Kong. Hong Kong financial firm Oriental Patron is a shareholder in both Nobel Holdings and Kaisun Energy. CIC will buy 45% of Nobel Oil and fund its expansion plans in the next nine months. Oriental Patron, which is owned and managed by former Chinese government officials, had already acquired a 5% stake in Nobel Oil. Kaisun Energy signed a memorandum of understanding to acquire all of Nobel Holdings from its existing shareholders, including CIC and Oriental Patron. Kaisun Energy is listed on Hong Kong’s Growth Enterprise Market and is 11% owned by Oriental Patron and Oriental Patron’s senior managers. Nobel Oil is in talks to acquire more Russian oil fields and may cooperate with CIC more in the future. CIC is looking to use more of its US$300 billion portfolio in overseas deals.
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