By OGJ editors
HOUSTON, Mar. 9 -- The offer allowing private investors to buy Statoil ASA shares has been successful. The company currently has registered more than 11,000 new shareholders, increasing the number of owners by 20%, of which 97% are private investors or companies registered in Norway.
After the Norwegian government's sell-down last summer, Statoil experienced a strong increase in liquidity, and this trend is continuing with the change in ownership over the last few weeks.
Already this year, Statoil has had an average turnover of 14 million shares/day on the Oslo Stock Exchange, more than twice last year's daily turnover. This makes the Statoil share more attractive for investors and is expected to have a positive effect on the company's future valuation.
The Norwegian government now owns 70.9% of the shares and retains overall control of Statoil.
