Canadian markets could face a bloody opening on Monday after the government blocked the C$5.17 billion ($5.22 billion) acquisition of Progress Energy Resources Corp by Malaysian state oil company Petronas , raising questions about other, bigger offers and about Canada's willingness to let foreign investors in.Canadian Industry Minister Christian Paradis said late Friday night that Petronas' bid for Progress -- one of the largest owners of exploration lands in the gas-rich Montney shale region in northeastern British Columbia -- would not provide the "net benefit" for the country required by Canada's foreign investment laws.Investors had expected a favorable decision on the bid by the minister, especially given Petronas' pledge to help spur Canada's nascent liquefied natural gas export industry by building an LNG export facility on the country's Pacific coast.But Paradis' veto also raises doubts over the outcome of Chinese oil group CNOOC's C$15.1 billion offer for oil producer Nexen and is expected to weigh on other Canadian firms hoping to tap the foreign investment needed to harvest their vast energy reserves and the mood among investors is somber.
Progress Energy Resources Corp (Progress) is engaged in the exploration for, and the acquisition, development and production of, oil and natural gas reserves in the provinces of British Columbia and Alberta. Shares of PRQ fell by 0.87% or $-0.19/share to $21.65. In the past year, the shares have traded as low as $9.44 and as high as $22.94. On average, 2286570 shares of PRQ.TO exchange hands on a given day and today's volume is recorded at 9977101.
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