The controversial billionaire who has snapped up more than 60million shares in oil giant Talisman has launched a blistering attack on the management and boards leading top companies.
Activist investor Carl Icahn – the 18th richest man in America – announced last month that he has invested £186million in the firm, which has 2,500 staff and contractors in Aberdeen, and 11 North Sea installations.
He is looking for a seat on the board – and last night said his firm, Charles Icahn Enterprises, was ready to launch a string of “friendly or not so friendly” acquisitions.
Calgary-based Talisman sold half of its UK North Sea assets to the Chinese state-backed Sinopec last December in a £932million joint venture deal.
Talisman chief executive Hal Kvisle said earlier this week the company plans to “dilute and exit” its North Sea business but added that “contractual obligations” meant the process would take longer. The company is under pressure from investors, including Mr Icahn, to step up its programme to sell assets to reduce debt levels.
His investment makes him its second-largest shareholder at Talisman, and he said: “There has never been a better time than today for activist investing, if practised properly.
“Several factors are responsible for this – one, extremely low interest rates, which make acquisitions much less costly, and two, the current awareness by many institutional investors that the prevalence of mediocre top management and non-caring boards at many companies must be dealt with if we are ever going to end high unemployment and compete in world markets.”
Mr Icahn has built up his fortune with stakes in some of the world’s most famous companies – including Motorola, Time Warner and Fairmont Hotels.
However, Time Magazine described him as a ruthless “corporate raider” after his hostile takeover of US airline TWA in 1985. He later sold TWA’s assets to repay the debt he used to buy the company.
In 1988, he took TWA private, gaining a personal profit of £292million, and leaving TWA with a debt of £336million. Analysts are forecasting he could double his investment in Talisman.
Talisman said yesterday it would sell a stake in some of its natural gas assets in British Columbia’s Montney field to Malaysia-controlled Progress Energy Canada Ltd for £900million.