Battle between Halliburton and Candover took  a fierce turn when Umbrellastream, a Candover-led consortium of funds tabled £15.50 cash bid proposal within hours against the £15.25-a-share take-over offer from Halliburton. Halliburton started taking keen interest in Expro’s figures soon after Umbrellastream made a bid at £14.35 a share in April. It is reliably learnt that Halliburton’s Texan management is very much determined to clinch the deal and is coming back with a lucrative offer next week. The company however maintains that no such proposal is yet under consideration.

With the steep rise in oil prices ($135 a barrel), and the global hunt for sources of supply, Expro’s oil well production-testing technology is in great demand. Analysts feel that rising oil prices and high consumption are making Expro a golden goose and the bidders are feeling confident of extracting substantial synergies from a deal even after paying a high price. Expro’s shares closed at £16.26, up 85p, indicating expectations of a higher bid by the market.

Halliburton would hold further negotiations with Expro’s board. Finance director, Mike Speakman, said that it has so far not received firm offer from any company, except Umbrellastream. Halliburton has been involved in several controversies and is under investigation by the US Department of Justice. But, according a spokesman, these issues are irrelevant to its offer for Expro.