The state-owned Korea National Oil Corp (KNOC) has bought the Calgary-based Harvest Energy Trust of Canada, dpa quoted the energy ministry in Seoul as announcing today. KNOC will pay 4.1 billion Canadian dollars (3.9 billion US dollars) for the company, in what is being seen as a bid for a stable source of energy for the resource-poor south Asian peninsula country. It represents the biggest purchase of a foreign oil company by South Korea. The deal will see KNOC pay 1.8 billion Canadian dollars in cash, and assume 2.3 billion Canadian dollars in liabilities. The transaction is subject to approval from Canadian shareholders, and regulators. Harvest produces around 35,000 barrels of oil per day (bpd). "This acquisition is significant because it gives KNOC a solid foothold in procurement in North America," the Deputy Minister for Energy Resources, Kim Jung Gwan, told the Yonhap national news agency.
