sp cap, page-8

"I've been wondering if the 3 weeks dd extension is related to squeezing those shares out of Bumi. If they needed money fast as has been speculated, then three weeks could be all an acquirer needs to soak up. However this does rather conflict with what we've read here about the whole line being for sale with a broker. Surely our bidder could lock that up off market now?"

I am guessing here, but what makes sense to me is that PetroChina aren't willing to acquire any stock until they get comfortable with their DD. They can acquire the 4% PT Bumi stake for 42c or so now rather than 52c in a few weeks' time, but in the broader scheme of things, does that 10c saving on 4% of stock really matter to them? It is a less than $2m or so saving in the context of a $165m+ acquisition.

They know they have PT Bumi's stake in the bag when they make the offer, so are perhaps acting conservatively here.