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Talisman attempting to divest from Sudan
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At a raucous annual meeting, Talisman Energy confirmed that it is in talks to sell its controversial oil project in Sudan. Talisman CEO Jim Buckee confirmed the company is having discussions with India’s state-owned oil company, Oil and Natural- Gas Corp., to sell its 25 percent stake in the Greater Nile Project Operating Co. Oil and Natural-Gas Corp. is one of about half a dozen companies that have expressed an interest in the properties to Talisman, Buckee said. “There are interested parties in that asset and they are one of the people we have been talking to,'' he said. He dismissed speculation that Talisman is prepared to sell its interest for $650 million, saying that it is worth more than that. Talisman has been under pressure to sell its operations in Sudan for a number of years. International agencies, including the Canadian federal government Harker Commission, and advocacy organizations maintain that revenues from the oil project are helping to fuel the Sudanese civil war and the human rights atrocities caused by it. About 100 people protesting human rights abuses and shouting ``Talisman Out of Sudan'' surrounded the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Calgary where the meeting was held. Police and private security guards monitored the meeting and reporters were told not to bring cameras or recording equipment inside the meeting room. In the meeting, Talisman presented a multi-media show, depicting the companies operations. One of the slides showed pictures of people in Sudan peacefully working on crafts. Speakers lined up at the microphones to criticize the company. “The company crossed the line big-time trying to exploit oil in the middle of a war zone,” said Merv Schafer of Calgary. Sudanese refugees accused Talisman of complicity in a massive depopulation of the area by the Sudanese military. Talisman acknowledged that some villagers had been “relocated” to make way for oil development — but said these people had been compensated. This brought laughter from a pro-Sudanese faction sitting at the front of the room. Several shareholders walked out when Sudanese refugees and their supporters spoke. James Roberts of New Brunswick, an observer at the meeting, called that “rude”: “They showed their ignorance for the Sudanese people and what they’re going through by not sticking around.” Out on the street, departing shareholders were met by dozens of noisy protestors, waving placards that read “Blood Money,” and shouting, “Shame, Shame, Talisman.” Compiled from reports by Bloomberg News and www.rabble.ca. For more information, visit Project Sudan. http://sudan.activist.ca
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