Aabar announces major revamp

Abu Dhabi: Aabar Petroleum PJSC said on Tuesday its chief executive officer, David Woodward, has resigned following the completion of the sale of Pearl Energy to Mubadala Development Company.

Senior members of Aabar's management team, Chris Gibson-Robinson, Richard Lorentz and Stephen Giles have also resigned, the company said in a statement. However, Mohammad Badawy Al Hussainy will continue as Aabar's chief financial officer and Kelvin Tang will remain general counsel.

"A new CEO will be appointed once identified by the board," Al Hussainy told Gulf News. "Right now, the day-to-day operations will be run by Aabar's board," he added.

Asked why the senior executives resigned, Al Hussainy said: "They have resigned because Aabar has decided to exit from the exploration and production business. The new board will review Aabar's future strategy."

He said Aabar will henceforth be known as Aabar Investments, following the approval of the new name by shareholders.

Part of the proceeds from the sale of Pearl will be applied towards the early redemption of Aabar's sukuk and the remainder will be used as funds towards new investment opportunities.

"The sale of Pearl has generated an estimated profit in excess of $100 million. After the sukuk redemption, it is expected that Aabar's balance sheet will consist of a total cash balance of approximately Dh2.2 billion," Aabar said.

Under the terms of the transaction, 100 per cent of the issued shares in Pearl have been transferred to the Mubadala group for a debt-free cash adjusted value of approximately $833.3 million.