Oil Search chairman Richard Lee made these remarks while also commenting on the firm’s half year results for 2016.
In a presentation to the firm’s shareholders in Australia yesterday Mr Lee said from the outset that had Oil Search’s bid gone through, it would this time be welcoming InterOIl Sharedholders to its register.
He said the firm had been able to make good progress in convincing InterOil on the merits and prospects of a merger with Oil Search and the vote by the shareholders would have been a few weeks ago had all gone as planned.
However, this changed when InterOil had advised in July of the ExxonMobil proposal which it had judged to be more superior to the one it (Oil Search) had proposed.
"We as a board decided not to match Exxon, which was our right and a similar position was adopted by Total, so in many ways there was a great deal of disappointment in the Oil Search camp to surrender the position of what you may some control over the integration and our destiny.
"But I think and you will hear today, that we see very clear benefits still from integration available and arguably more certain for Oil search shareholders and an all-time shareholder value was our primary dimension in our thinking
"We are not in the driver’s seat but we are certainly in the same bus.