HONG KONG/CALGARY (Reuters) – State-controlled CNOOC Ltd launched one of China’s richest takeover bids yet on Monday by agreeing to buy Canadian oil producer Nexen Inc for $15.1 billion, forcing Ottawa to decide whether national security concerns outweigh its desire for foreign investment in its energy resources.

CNOOC, China’s third-largest oil company, hopes to sell the deal to shareholders and the government by offering a hefty 61 percent premium to Nexen’s Friday stock price, pledging to retain all employees and promising to make Canada home base for its Western Hemisphere operations.

CALGARY, Alberta, July 20 (Reuters) – Alberta, the largest
source of U.S. oil imports, plans to review the safety of its
massive pipeline network after a number of high-profile oil
spills prompted calls for action, Ken Hughes, the Canadian
province’s energy minister, said on Friday.

Following consultations with the oil and pipeline
industries, Hughes said he directed the provincial energy
regulator to retain an independent third party to review how
pipeline integrity is managed, how safe water crossings are and
what plans are in place for responding to spills.

CALGARY, Alberta, July 19 (Reuters) – Nexen Inc on
Thursday extended its record of meeting financial targets under
its interim chief with gains in second-quarter cash flow and
production, partly on the startup of a new oil project off
Nigeria.

Profit at Canada’s No. 6 independent oil explorer fell a
steeper-than-expected 57 percent in the quarter, though it said
much of the drop was due to a charge for a previously announced
unsuccessful exploration well in the Gulf of Mexico.