Dana bid hopes take a KNOC

Cross? He's hopping mad. In the face of Korea National Oil Corporation's hostile bid at £18 a share, or £1.9bn, Tom Cross, chief executive of Dana Petroleum, today launched a blistering defence. The document was a model of its kind. There was the independent expert's opinion that Dana is worth up to £24.65; lots of pretty graphs to illustrate the company's strong production record in the North Sea; and bullish talk about the potential of Dana's explorations off the Faroe Islands and Mauritania. It was all sprinkled with a withering assessment of state-owned KNOC's difficulties in trying to secure oil assets in a hurry. As we hacks say, great KNOC-ing copy. There's just one problem. Some 45% of Dana shareholders have said that they are minded to accept the offer. They have looked at the 50% premium to the old share price and are desperate to keep the Koreans keen. What Cross really needs is a counter-bidder to appear, or a collection of rival shareholders to rally for the defence. Neither has happened yet. Sadly, the clock is ticking on Dana's independence. Shame.