Eni fails in Burren Energy buyout

Burren Energy's operations include oil fields in Turkmenistan.

Italian energy giant Eni has dropped its attempt to buy London-based oil firm Burren Energy.

Eni refused to increase its £12-a-share offer, which valued Burren at £1.7bn.

FTSE 250-listen Burren, which has operations in countries including Egypt, Turkmenistan and Yemen said that the offer undervalued the firm.

Shares in Burren fell by about 15% to £10.10p after it said the offer failed "to reflect the fundamental and strategic value" of its assets.

Burren, which floated in 2003, has a minority stake in Indian firm Hindustan Oil Exploration and also has a small oil shipping business.

Record oil prices and demand for new sources of supply have added to interest in mergers and acquisitions in the oil sector.

Shares in the firm ended 14.5% lower at £10.15.