Santos on Monday said it would grant the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company and investment group Carlyle a four-week extension of its exclusivity period to make a binding takeover offer, after previously granting the group a two-week extension that expired on Friday.
The consortium in late June floated a tentative price point of $US5.76 ($8.89) a share for Santos, but its shares have consistently traded well below that, an indication that investors are concerned about the deal going through.
Santos reiterated on Monday that there was no certainty the talks would result in a binding takeover agreement for what would be the largest all-cash takeover in Australian history.
If a deal is reached it would require clearance from regulators in Australia, PGN and the United States, with approval from Australia's Foreign Investment Review Board seen as the biggest hurdle.
On Monday morning, STO shares were up 1.0 per cent to $7.84.
Also on Monday, Santos reported it made a $US439 million ($678 million) net profit in the first half, down from $US636 million ($982 million) a year ago.
It made $US1.09 billion ($1.7 billion) in free cash flow from operations, slightly up from $1.07 billion ($1.7 billion) year ago, while production held steady at 44.1 million barrels of oil equivalent.
Santos managing director and chief executive officer Kevin Gallagher said the results demonstrated the reliability of Santos to generate strong cash flow from operations.
Santos declared an interim dividend of US 13.4 cents (20.7 cents) per share, franked to 10 per cent, up from 13 cents a year ago.
