RE:RE:Should IAE and INA now merge?Yes, there is no doubt that taking on INA's debt could place IAE in a precarious position should Stella be delayed, encounter some unexpected cost, or if oil prices continue to fall. IAE would be a much riskier company if it merged with INA anytime soon.
Speaking of oil prices, it is interesting to note that up until recently the normally quiet OPEC executive was tripping over each other in the media jawboning prices down. Recently I find the rhetoric is changing such as this comment in the news today "Oil prices may have hit a floor and could move higher very soon, OPEC's secretary-general said Monday in his first comments on the subject after a seven-month-long rout."
OPEC is under enormous pressure to stabilize oil prices yet they would like to save face by not calling an emergency meeting (as they have repeatedly said they would not do). So what's the next best solution to an emergency meeting? Talk the market back up.