The return of Tony Hayward, the former chief executive of BP, to the corporate scene with a £1bn fundraising for an oil and gas fund has won strong backing from investors, according to people familiar with the matter.
The launch of the cash shell, Vallares, on Thursday comes just nine months after Mr Hayward left the UK oil group in the wake of the Gulf of Mexico spill. Vallares will look to buy companies in the oil and gas sector with an enterprise value of between £3bn and £8bn in emerging markets.
“We were pleasantly surprised by the extent of the support,” said Mr Hayward who was widely criticised for his handling of the BP crisis and unfortunate gaffes at the time, such as saying he wanted “his life back”. Asked if he was worried about what investors’ reaction to his participation might be, Mr Hayward would only say: “You never know until you ask but there was enthusiastic support.
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