Total CEO: Co Probably Will Expand In Canada Through Buys

Oil major Total SA (TOT), which recently withdrew a bid for Canada's UTS Energy Corp. (UTS.T), will "probably" expand in Canada's oil sands by buying other units, Chief Executive Christophe de Margerie said Friday.

Total last month withdrew its C$830 million hostile bid for Canada's UTS Energy Corp. (UTS.T) after failing to win over enough shareholders.

The attempt to buy UTS wasn't a "miss," as it illustrates Total's discipline and unwillingness to pay more for an asset than it believes it should, de Margerie said.

"We will probably do it (expand the company's position in the Canadian oil sands) with other operations," he said at the company's annual general meeting of shareholders.

Still, de Margerie also noted that Total also already has opportunities to expand there based on its existing assets in the oil sands.

Separately, de Margerie said that Canadian oil sands assets have the advantage that Canadian law doesn't insist on their immediate development, allowing the company to decide when best to go ahead.

-By Adam Mitchell, Dow Jones Newswires; [phone]; [e-mail]