Talisman Energy

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Talisman Energy Inc.

Type	Public (TSX: TLM)
Founded	Calgary, Alberta
Headquarters	Calgary, Alberta
Key people	John Manzoni, CEO, Philip D. Dolan, CFO
Industry	Oil and Gasoline
Products	Crude Oil and Natural Gas
Revenue	$7.944 billion CAN (2006)
Website	www.talisman-energy.com

Talisman Energy Inc. TSX: TLM is one of Canada's largest petroleum SB companies. It was originally part of British Petroleum, known as BP Canada, but in 1992 it became an independent company named Talisman Energy.

The company initially sold off money losing mining operations, and focused on its large natural gas holdings in British Columbia. It also quickly began expanding internationally, controversially entering several markets that other companies had shunned.

1 History
2 Environmental Record
3 Corporate governance
4 See also
5 External links
6 ^ SEC Info ^ SEC Info ^ SEC Info ^ Bnet ^ Bnet ^ The Oil Drum

[edit] History

In 1992 it established Fortuna Petroleum, which became one of the first international oil companies to do business with Cuba.

In 1993 Talisman bought Encor Inc from BCE, doubling in size and becoming one of Canada's largest petroleum companies. In 1994 the company bought Bow Valley Energy from British Gas PLC, gaining more assets in Canada and an important presence in the North Sea and Southeast Asia. Early in 1995 it pulled out of Cuba to focus on these areas. In 1997 it launched a hostile takeover of Wascana Energy, a former crown corporation of the Saskatchewan government. It got into a bidding war over Wascana with Canadian Occidental Petroleum (now Nexen), and failed in its attempt. It continued its aggressive expansion, investing in the North Sea and Indonesia and in 1997 bought the smaller Pembina Resources.

In 1998 Talisman made one of its most controversial moves when it purchased Arakis Energy, which was one of the largest players in the Sudanese oil industry. At the time the Second Sudanese Civil War was under way, and the government of Sudan was almost totally reliant on oil revenues for its war effort. This war effort was repeatedly accused of war crimes, human rights abuses, and genocide. International observers accused the Sudanese government of forcibly displacing residents to make way for oil exploration and exploitation. As conditions in Sudan worsened an international outcry developed, led by NGOs and churches. They called for divestment in Talisman shares and pushed the Canadian government to penalize the company. As part of this protest the Presbyterian Church of Sudan sued the company in an American court for genocide, stating Talisman had helped Sudanese officials "bomb churches, kill church leaders and attack villages in an effort to clear the way for oil exploration." In an unprecedented event an American judge decided the lawsuit was valid. The divestment drive proved successful; major investors such as the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan, threatened to sell their shares if the company did not pull out of Sudan. Despite large profits Talisman's stock steadily fell. In 2003 Talisman agreed to pull out of Sudan, selling its holdings to an Indian company ONGC Videsh. Since then Talisman has expanded its operation in Southeast Asia and in the North Sea, with brief and unsuccessful exploration operations in South Eastern Trinidad & Tobago .The rapid rise in the price of oil has meant massive profits. 2005 also saw rumours that Talisman may be bought by Total. In September 2006 the Sudanese lawsuit was dismissed by the US District Court for the Southern District of New York, pending any appeal by the plaintiffs. The court concluded that the plaintiffs had no admissible evidence to support the claims against Talisman.

On May 30, 2007 the Company announced the retirement of its longtime President & CEO, James Buckee. John Manzoni, formerly of BP, was named as his successor, effective September 1, 2007.

[edit] Environmental Record

Talisman Energy is participating in the United Nations Global Impact by taking responsible actions towards environmental issues.^[1] The United Nations Global Impact is a voluntary initiative that brings together companies, governments, civil society and other groups to advance human rights, labour and environmental principles.^[2] In Canadian tonnes, Talisman Energy is releasing 2.5 tonnes of carbon dioxide which is not all that much compared to other oil and gas companies.^[3] Talisman Energy has started building a 10-megawatt co-generation power plant at its Edson natural gas processing facility which will cost them twenty one million dollars.^[4] According to the president of Talisman's Energy, this new plant will increase the production of energy, and decrease the amount of pollution that is being released out into the environment.^[5] Although carbon dioxide emissions are low for this company, the talk about global warming has aroused a question on whether or not to put a carbon tax on all oil companies, which in the long run would save oil.^[6]

[edit] Corporate governance

Current members of the board of directors of Talisman Energy are: Douglas Baldwin, James Buckee, Kevin Dunne, Al Flood, Dale Parker, Lawrence Tapp, Stella Thompson, Robert Welty, and Charles Wilson.