The Oil Man: Trinity/Range deal latest

It has been announced this morning that the previously flagged deal between these companies by which Range Resources were scheduled to acquire Trinity Exploration's West coast assets, has failed to obtain regulatory approvals in Trinidad. This means that the deal will be unable to complete by the backstop date of 30th November and, accordingly, lapses.

Whilst this is a disappointment, both companies have other fish to fry.

For Trinity, as they had other good bidders for the asset, they will re-market it, but as it continues to perform well and contribute cash, there is no hurry. In addition, this does not change the investment profile for 2018.

For Range, despite being disappointing, they too still have an existing large onshore presence in Trinidad, and they can focus on their waterflood programme and of course the acquisition of the drilling company.

That and the Indonesian deal completed means that there will be no shortage of newsflow for shareholders, including obviously the re-listing of the shares expected next month.

Back from Baku tomorrow with a catch up of this week's news.

Malcolm Graham-Wood is an independent oil industry expert and freelance contributor, not a direct employee of Interactive Investor.

This article is for information and discussion purposes only and does not form a recommendation to invest or otherwise. The value of an investment may fall. The investments referred to in this article may not be suitable for all investors, and if in doubt, an investor should seek advice from a qualified investment adviser.