CPP buys $300M stake in Bakken oil firm Halcn Resources

CPP Investment Board will spend$300 million in a U.S. company that's active in the Bakken formation, an emerging source of light oil underlying the Canada-U.S. border in North Dakota.

Theinvestment board that runs Canada's national pension planis buyingan equity stake in Halcn Resources Corp. as part of a $1.45-billion deal that will see the Houston-based company purchase oil and gas assets in the Williston Basin from Petro Hunt LLC.

Halcn Resources owns producing and undeveloped oil and gas assets in the Williston Basin. The company currently extracts 10,500 barrels of oil equivalent per day from its assets throughout the Bakken.

CPP will buy common stock in Halcon at $7.16per share, the companies said in a release Monday.

"[This] investment aligns with our strategy to provide strategic, long-term capital to well-positioned companies like Halcn and work with management to help create value now and in the future," CPPIB's vice-presidentR. Scott Lawrence said.