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Catalyst’s opposition to Corus-Shaw Media deal questioned by investors, analysts

Catalyst has argued that Corus is overpaying for Shaw Media by as much as $858 million.

The motives fuelling a minority shareholder’s make an effort to thwart Corus’s $2.65 billion purchase of Shaw Media were called into question Friday, as Catalyst Capital Group Inc. aired its concerns about the proposed sale on a conference call with investors and analysts.

Catalyst, a personal equity firm with US$6 billion in assets that are experts in distressed situations, said its only objective is to maximize the value of those minority shares. The company says it owns no other position attached to the transition, other than class B shares of Corus.

Catalyst has argued that Corus is overpaying for Shaw Media up to $858 million. The non-public equity firm is calling for that March 9 vote to be postponed, for more disclosure and the capability to inquire directly of the Shaw family, which controls both Corus and Shaw Media’s parent company, Shaw Communications Inc.

“We actually have obtained extraordinary support from fellow shareholders,” said Gabriel de Alba, managing director and partner at Catalyst. He did not name any investors but asserted some were large ones, and that the momentum behind their cause has grown in the last 24 hours. “They have seen the same concerns that Catalyst has highlighted associated with both valuation and reporting,” he added.

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More than 20,000 jobs on the line as Canada’s oil drilling rig fleet shrinks

Three of every four rigs in Canada are sitting idle this February, normally the busiest time of the year, as drilling falls to 30-year lows.

Towering bone-dry oil derricks, idled drilling rigs and rows of unused trucks line the commercial yards on the outskirts of Edmonton. Years back, these yards could be empty in February, that is prime here we are at crews of roughnecks along with other workers to be in the oilfields of rural Alberta drilling for crude.

People in the drilling industry frequently call the busiest season – in the tail end of December through to March – “100 times of hell,” but this year it might be better referred to as 100 days of boredom. Drilling activity in Canada has fallen to 30-year lows, said Western Energy Services Corp. chief executive Alex MacAusland during an earnings ask Friday.

Three of every four drilling rigs in Canada are sitting idle so far in February, and analysts believe the yards will stay full in the future as more service companies idle, retire or try to sell equipment that isn’t in use.

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