Does Bord Gáis Éireann have its eye on a chunk of the Corrib field?

mayo | environment | news report Monday March 17, 2008 15:15 by S.Cat

and would such an investment get Eamon Ryan off the hook?

According to some sources in the business world, Bord Gais Éireann has expressed an interest in buying Marathon Oil's Irish operations, including an 18% interest in the Corrib field.

US company Marathon has indicated that it may sell off its Irish operations in an effort to streamline its portfolio.

BGÉ is currently completing a plan for submission to Minister for Energy and Natural Resources Eamon Ryan, which will outline proposals for €750 million investment in energy related businesses.

MArathon own eighteen per cent of the Corrib Gas field- will Bord Gais snap it up?

Anti-capitalists will be dismayed to hear that Bord Gáis is only interested in beefing up its own holdings so that it can be taken over by one of the big British operators, thus making its directors very rich while throwing its consumers to the wilds of the profit-driven energy markets.

However, such a takeover would be unlikely for the next few years at least, thus giving Eamon Ryan a nice way out of the problems he has in answering critics of the lack of State involvement in the Corrib scheme. If Ryan has any sense, he will push for the State company BGÉ to get rapidly involved in profiting from Corrib and other lucrative resources finds in Irish waters.

John Mullins, CEO of BGÉ, has denied that the company is hoping to be taken over.

Here's an article from the Irish Independent saying that privatisation is the reason for the expansion plan: http://www.independent.ie/business/irish/bord-gais-sign....html

and here's a different article from the Irish Examiner saying the opposite:

http://www.irishexaminer.com/irishexaminer/pages/story....1.asp

RTE's "The Business " reported:

"BORD GÁIS PRIVATISATION 'NOT ON AGENDA' - The Irish Examiner quotes Bord Gáis chief executive John Mullins as saying that privatisation of the State-owned company is not on its agenda.

He stressed that the company has the capacity to invest €750m over the next five years to expand the business through acquisitions, strategic partnerships and expansion into the renewable energy sector. "

You'd wonder exactly why they want to beef up the company's value wouldn't you?