Translated from the following link: http://www.hegnar.no/analyser/article509827.ece

Oil giant Statoil secured a profit of NOK 5 billion by selling assets. - They should buy DNO or Questerre for the money, "said analyst Trond Omdal.

Article by: Øystein Schmidt (Reuters - 11/24/1910 11:10)

On Tuesday, oil giant Statoil secured a profit of NOK 5 billion after selling 40 percent of its oil sands project in Alberta, Canada (Kai Kos Dehseh) to the Thai oil company PTT Exploration and Production (PTTEP).

Statoil retain 60 percent of the venture and will continue as operator.

Arctic analyst Trond Omdal believes Statoil should use the money from the sale to buy other companies – rather than new licenses/fields.

- They could buy Questerre, or DNO, that would lift their stock price" said Omdal to Finansavisen with a smile.

In any case, he believes that the group should spend money on buying a company rather than licenses or properties given the current pricing in several different markets.

- The asset market has been stronger than the corporate market. Statoil could use the money from the sale on both conventional and unconventional oil and gas, says Omdahl, and highlights the Draupne field in particular as a way of possibly increasing the company’s proportion licenses on the Norwegian continental shelf.