Shell to buy BG group in £47bn deal

Oil giant Royal Dutch Shell is to buy exploration firm BG Group in a deal valuing the British business at about £47 billion.

Oil giant Royal Dutch Shell is to buy exploration firm BG Group in a deal valuing the British business at about £47bn.

The companies unveiled details of the mega merger – the biggest in the industry for several years – in a statement to the London stock exchange.

The swoop by the Anglo-Dutch company comes as the oil industry looks to become more efficient and reduce costs in the face of falling energy prices.

BG Group, which employs about 5,200 staff in 24 countries, has key growth projects in Brazil and Australia. The natural gas producer was created in 1997 when British Gas demerged into two separately-listed companies, with Centrica having responsibility for the retail side of the business.

BG issued a statement last night confirming speculation that it was in talks with Royal Dutch Shell. Today, it confirmed its board had backed an offer from Shell valuing the business at 383p a share.