Standard Chartered Private Equity (SCPE) has purchased a stake of approximately 4.2% in Salamander Energy plc. The investment was acquired from one of Salamander’s pre-IPO investors in an off-market transaction.

"We are delighted to have become shareholders and to participate in Salamander’s growth. We have known the Salamander team for some time and respect the disciplined approach they have taken to building their business," commented Alastair Morrison, SCPE’s Managing Director based in Singapore.

"Upstream exploration and production requires investors who take a medium term view of value growth and understand the risks. This deal sits well with our investment approach," he added. "Salamander operates in a core market for Standard Chartered and with the bank’s established advisory, financing and hedging capabilities in the oil and gas sector, our equity team is expected to be increasingly active in the oil sector in future."

Salamander has built a South East Asia–focused portfolio of oil and gas opportunities spanning production, development and frontier exploration over the last three years. The company is also developing a track record in mergers and acquisitions, executing asset acquisitions at attractive prices to complement its technical skills and knowledge. In 2007, it further extended its portfolio through acquiring licenses in Vietnam and Laos, farming into an exploration block in the Philippines and acquiring a stake in a licensed area in East Kalimantan.