Burren Energy plc was a British

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 oil exploration

Oil exploration

Hydrocarbon exploration is the search by petroleum geologists and geophysicists for hydrocarbon deposits beneath the Earth's surface, such as oil and natural gas...

 and production company founded in 1994 by Finian O’Sullivan who served as its CEO and, latterly, president. The company originally began as an oil transportation company in the Caspian Sea

Caspian Sea

The Caspian Sea is the largest enclosed body of water on Earth by area, variously classed as the world's largest lake or a full-fledged sea. The sea has a surface area of and a volume of...

 region, but later diversified into oil production in Turkmenistan

Turkmenistan

Turkmenistan , formerly also known as Turkmenia is one of the Turkic states in Central Asia. Until 1991, it was a constituent republic of the Soviet Union, the Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic . Turkmenistan is one of the six independent Turkic states...

, and in 2002 acquired Tacoma Resources, a company developing oil reserves in the Republic of Congo.

Russian private equity firm Baring Vostok Capital Partners

Baring Vostok Capital Partners

Baring Vostok Capital Partners is an independent private equity firm focused on investments in Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States...

 invested $27 million in the company in 2000. The company floated on the London Stock Exchange

London Stock Exchange

The London Stock Exchange is a stock exchange located in the City of London within the United Kingdom. , the Exchange had a market capitalisation of US$3.7495 trillion, making it the fourth-largest stock exchange in the world by this measurement...

 in late 2003, and was part of the FTSE 250 index. In February 2005, the company acquired a 26% stake in India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

n firm Hindustan Oil Exploration, and was awarded two exploration contracts in Egypt

Egypt

Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...

. The company expanded exploration into Yemen

Yemen

The Republic of Yemen , commonly known as Yemen , is a country located in the Middle East, occupying the southwestern to southern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the north, the Red Sea to the west, and Oman to the east....

 and Oman

Oman

Oman , officially called the Sultanate of Oman , is an Arab state in southwest Asia on the southeast coast of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by the United Arab Emirates to the northwest, Saudi Arabia to the west, and Yemen to the southwest. The coast is formed by the Arabian Sea on the...

 in January 2006.

On November 30, 2007 Burren agreed to be acquired by Italian energy company Eni

Eni

Eni S.p.A. is an Italian multinational oil and gas company, present in 70 countries, and currently Italy's largest industrial company with a market capitalization of 87.7 billion euros , as of July 24, 2008...

 in a deal valuing the company at £1.73 billion. Eni gained control of the firm in February 2008 and subsequently delisted its shares from the stock exchange. Burren's operations have been fully integrated into those of Eni.

External links

• Official website
• Burren determined to drill where others fear to tread, Sunday Times article, March 5, 2006.