US Kosmos to Seek London Listing

US independent Kosmos Energy, which discovered multiple gas fields offshore Senegal and Mauritania into which BP farmed last year, said August 2 it intends to pursue a secondary listing on the main market of the London Stock Exchange. Its primary listing will remain in New York.

It said that it has continued to develop since its 2011 initial public offering (IPO) to become one of the few independent global E&P firms listed in the US.

Explaining reasons for the listing, it said that although it benefits from a diverse and supportive shareholder base built over a sustained period since its New York Stock Exchange listing in 2011: "Kosmos believes there are a number of European investment funds and specialist international oil and gas investors that are currently unable to hold Kosmos’ shares due to their listing outside of a European regulated market."

Kosmos CEO Andrew G Inglis said: "This secondary listing is the next step in the company’s evolution. Our NYSE listing has enabled Kosmos to attract blue chip investors and given us access to significant opportunities. We selected the LSE for our secondary listing because of its strong liquidity, reputation for transparency, and participants’ knowledge of the role of frontier exploration and development in our industry”. The listing is due for completion 3Q2017.

BP CEO Bob Dudley said August 1 that the firm's farm-in to Kosmos' offshore Senegal/Mauritania offshore gas would help expand BP in the 2020s.

Kosmos separately partners Tullow in two Ghana offshore oil and gas fields and is exploring Sao Tome e Principe and Suriname in its own right. 

Mark Smedley