RNS Number:2357M
Centurion Energy International Inc.
12 June 2003
Centurion Energy International Inc.
Admission to the Alternative Investment Market of the London Stock Exchange
("AIM")
Centurion Energy International Inc. ("Centurion" or " the Company "), an
international oil and gas explorer and producer listed on the Toronto Stock
Exchange (TSX) , is pleased to announce the admission today of its Common Shares
to trading on AIM.
Williams de Broe Plc is Nominated Adviser and Broker to Centurion. There are
currently approximately 62.3 million shares in issue. The Company's current
market capitalisation is approximately C$82.9 million (#36 million). C$2.3 : #1.
Said Arrata, President and CEO of Centurion, said:
"We believe our listing on AIM will allow access to UK and European investors as
the Company continues to take advantage of future growth opportunities. We
expect to maintain our record of success in both exploration and production. Our
solid cash flow and earnings puts Centurion in a strong financial position to
look at new opportunities as well as exploring some of our own world class
exploration prospects. Listing and trading on AIM does not require the company
to issue any additional common shares."
Some additional information about Centurion follows :
* Centurion's focus is on North Africa, where it currently operates in Tunisia
and Egypt. Centurion's working interest share of production in Tunisia, from the
company-operated fields of Al Manzah, El Bibane, Ezzaouia and Robbana, is 3,350
bopd. The SEEB 27 MW Power Plant, in a joint development with Caterpillar Inc.,
came on stream in May 2003, adding approximately 700 boepd to current production
which is included in the above total. The Company's current working interest
share of production in Egypt from the El Wastani and Hana fields totals 3,030
boepd.
* Centurion's total production is currently 6,380 boepd, which is more than
double its 2001 exit rate. Centurion's proved and probable reserves at December
31, 2002 are 38.3 million barrels of oil equivalent.
* Reported oil and gas revenues for the year ended 31 December 2002 were
C$34.3m. Cash flow from operations was C$22.1m and Net Income was
* C$ 6.5m. Total assets at the period end were C$140.6m and Long Term
Liabilities were C$35.2m including a limited recourse amount of C $14.5m.
* Plans for 2003 in Tunisia include 2 step out wells to test the potential
south-east extension of the Ezzaouia reservoir, an exploration well on the
Robbana concession, and seismic acquisition on the Mellita permit. In Egypt, the
completion of the South Manzala gas development, with expected completion in the
third quarter, will add 5,833 boepd to Centurion's daily production.
The Business
Centurion is an international oil and gas company. Operations include the
exploration, development and production of oil and gas from properties located
in Tunisia and Egypt.
Centurion was formed in May 1997 from the merger of two oil and gas companies,
Leader and Eagle. The company differs form its peers, many of whom are involved
in speculative high risk exploration activity, whereas Centurion has invested in
producing fields and properties that already exhibit a seismically defined
structure. As cash flow from operations increase, Centurion will be able to
afford to be involved in research and exploration for new and additional
reserves within or alongside existing properties or proven fields or on other
unexplored acreage.
Centurion's business operations include a 50 per cent. interest in the SEEB
Power Facility that generates electricity utilising part of Centurion's existing
Tunisian gas production and reserves as fuel. Sales of electricity from this
power facility commenced in May 2003.
Centurion's aggregate oil and gas sales for the year ended 31 December 2002
amounted to approximately 1.66 million barrels of oil equivalent for revenues
(net of royalties) of C$34.3 million compared to approximately 558,000 barrels
of oil for revenues (net of royalties) of C$14.7 million for the year ended 31
December, 2001 (774,000 barrels of oil for revenues (net of royalties) of C$27.5
million for the year ended 31 December 2000). The average oil price realised
during the year ended 31 December 2002 was C$33.42 per barrel compared to
C$31.89 per barrel in 2001 (C$38.96 in 2000). Gas from the El Wastani
Development Lease was sold at an average of $US2.80 per mscf since production
started in March 2002. Revenue for the year ended 31 December 2001 was
substantially lower as El Wastani was non-producing during that year.
In the short to medium term, Centurion anticipates that its future production
mix will lead to increased revenues arising from gas production as a proportion
of the Company's total income, as a result of the El Manzala South gas well (in
Egypt), which is due to commence production shortly.
Centurion is listed on the TSX. In conjunction with the TSX, Admission to AIM
should widen Centurion's shareholder base and increase liquidity in the Shares
over the longer term and is expected to provide access to additional sources of
capital for its projects in the future.
Strategy
Centurion's strategy is to exploit lower risk development opportunities in
countries where the Company can leverage their knowledge of doing business and
where the perceived low cost environment should assist the Company in delivering
operating profits and positive operating cash flows. Centurion has invested in
both producing fields and properties that have already produced positive seismic
results. As the cash flow from these operations increases, the Company intends
to invest in more speculative activity with additional investment in the
exploration for new fields.
The Company's current strategy includes (i) the continued exploitation of the
Company's existing assets in North Africa, considering potential new lower risk
developments in those concessions to offset any normal decline in existing
wells; (ii) commencing production at certain other sites in Egypt, which the
Directors believe may provide a relatively higher return and increase production
at a relatively lower risk because the Company is tying in proved reserves;
(iii) exploration drilling in certain other sites in existing permits which the
Directors believe could lead to commercially exploitable oil and gas finds; and
(iv) acquiring or farming in on new exploration acreage as well as participating
or farming out riskier acreage currently held.
Current Trading and Prospects
On 27 May 2003, the Company announced its financial results for the three months
ended 31 March 2003. These results showed net income of C$4.2 million for the
period on revenue of C$15.0 million and average production of 5,490 boepd. Since
the period end, the SEEB Power Facility has become operational, adding
approximately 700 boepd to production levels. Progress is also being made on the
El Manzala South gas development in Egypt with the first gas production expected
during 2003. On the basis that the El Manzala South gas development starts
production as expected, and provided that existing production levels on its
other properties is maintained, the Company expects its production levels to
increase to in excess of 10,000 boepd during 2003, although no certainty can be
provided in that regard. As a result of this increase in gas production,
operating margins are expected to decline although total revenues are expected
to increase due to these higher levels of production.
Principal Assets and Reserves
The following is a general description of Centurion's current principal
properties, all of which are located in Tunisia or Egypt, including Centurion's
share of oil and gas reserves.
% working Centurion's
share of Gross
Interest (Proved &
Probable)
Oil Gas
(mmstb) (bcf)
Tunisia
El Bibane 73.8 3.14 30.96
Robbana 80 0.03 -
Ezzaouia 31.4 1.51 1.98
Grombalia 37.5 - -
Al Manzah 75 0.82 -
Mellita 50 - -
Egypt
El Manzala South 100 - 114.99
El Wastani 100 - 33.03
West Gharib 30 0.45 -
Total 5.95 180.96
Financial Record
Set out below is a summary of Centurion's trading record for three years ended
31 December 2002, which has been extracted from the audited financial statements
of Centurion.
For the Year Ended 31 December
2002 2001 2000
Item (in $Cdn thousands unless
otherwise noted)
Oil and gas revenue 34,304 14,664 27,452
Cash flow from operations 22,113 8,105 19,059
Income before taxes 10,876 5,902 16,952
Income for the year 6,488 3,326 10,179
Total Assets 140,644 129,292 101,236
Long Term Liabilities 35,157 18,533 15,299
Directors
Said S. Arrata, P.Eng, President and Chief Executive Officer, aged 62
Said Arrata serves as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Centurion and
is a member of the board of directors of the Company. He holds a B.Sc. degree in
Petroleum Engineering (1964) from the University of Cairo. During more than
thirty-five years of experience in the oil and gas industry in design, project
management, production and drilling engineering, Mr. Arrata has held management
and directorship positions with major oil companies in Canada and overseas
including Quantel Engineering, Pyramid Resources and Abacan Resources. He was
co-founder of an engineering firm operating in Canada and internationally for
nearly two decades. He is a Member of the Association of Professional Engineers,
Geologists and Geophysicists of Alberta ("APEGGA").
Barry W. Swan, CA, Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, aged 56
Barry Swan serves as Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of
Centurion and is a member of the board of directors of the Company. Mr. Swan
qualified as a chartered accountant in 1971. During his career, spanning over 30
years, he has held positions with energy companies in North America with
operations in the North Sea, Indonesia, Yemen, Canada and the USA. Mr. Swan was
one of the founders of the Sunlite Oil Company, and Boss Energy Ltd., both of
which were merged into Leader and eventually merged to form the Company pursuant
to the Amalgamation. Mr. Swan currently oversees all of Centurion's accounting,
reporting and financing activities and is a member of the institute of Chartered
Accountants of Alberta.
Michael Miller, Non-Executive Director, aged 58
Michael Miller has been a director of Centurion since May 1997. He has also been
Chairman of the Board of Safety Boss International Limited since 1991. Mr Miller
has 33 years' experience including supervision on more than 400 well control and
firefighting operations, onshore throughout the world. Prior to rejoining Safety
Boss in 1979 Mr. Miller supervised drilling and completion operations in several
different countries around the world. His last position was as Operations
Manager for a large Canadian Independent. Mr. Miller acted as the Safety Boss
Project Manager for the Kuwait Fires Project where the company successfully
capped 180 wells in 200 days. Mr. Miller was awarded the Emir's Star of Kuwait;
he was appointed as a member of the Order of Canada in 1994 and received an
honorary doctorate from Athabasca University in 1994. He was inducted into the
Canadian Petroleum Hall of Fame in 2002. He has presented numerous papers on
various aspects of well control and large scale hydrocarbon firefighting.
Derrick R. Armstrong, Non-Executive Director, aged 47
Derrick Armstrong has been a director of Centurion since June, 1998. He holds a
Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Calgary and law degree from the
University of Alberta. He has practised law continuously in Calgary, Alberta,
Canada since 1980. In 1991 he founded the Calgary office of the law firm of
Ogilvie and Company, which became Armstrong Perkins Hudson LLP in 1999. in July,
2002, Armstrong Perkins Hudson LLP merged with Borden Lander Gervais LLP, a
Canadian law firm with offices in Montreal, Toronto, Ottawa, Calgary and
Vancouver. Mr. Armstrong is the co-head of the Securities and Capital Markets
Department of Borden Ladner Gervais LLP in Calgary, and a member of the firm's
Securities National and Capital Markets Group. He has practised almost
exclusively in corporate finance and securities law, principally acting for
agents and issuers on public offerings. He is currently a member of the National
Advisory Board to the TSX Venture Exchange, and is the chairman of that
Exchange's local policy advisory group in the province of Alberta.
Gary Awad, Non-Executive Director, aged 57
Gary Awad has been a director of Centurion since May 2001. He is an adviser to
Delta Oil Company and is the Chairman and Managing Director of ThreeG Capital, a
privately held international consulting, equity and venture capital company. He
was Vice President of Global Development of Fluor Corporation, a global
knowledge based services company from 1999 to 2001 and before that he was
Executive Vice President of Unocal International Energy Ventures Limited, an
international new ventures company and subsidiary of Unocal Corp. Mr Awad holds
an MBA from the University of Chicago and sits on the board of Metametrix
Corporation and on the Board of Governors of the Reed Institute.
Robert C. Cook, Nominee Non-Executive Director, aged 38
Robert C. Cook holds a Bachelor of Science (Engineering) degree from MacMaster
University, Canada, and a Master of Business Administration degree from the
European University Centre for Management Studies, the Netherlands. He is also a
registered Professional Engineer in the Province of Alberta and a CFA Charter
Holder. From 1988 to 2000, he worked for Shell Canada Limited and Shell
International Exploration and Production as a staff reservoir engineer with
assignments in Canada, Europe, Africa and the Middle East. Since 2000, he has
worked for ARC Financial Corporation as a senior Investment Analyst in the
Exploration and Production Group. ARC Financial Corporation is a specialised
investment management firm focused on the energy sector. Robert is a member of
the Association for Investment Management and Research, the Calgary Society of
Financial Analysts, the Society of Petroleum Engineers and the Association of
Professional Engineers, Geologists and Geophysicists of Alberta.
Management
Tony Anton, P.Eng. Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, aged 59
Tony Anton serves as Senior Vice-President and Chief Operating Officer of the
Company. Mr. Anton has been active in the Petroleum Industry, both Canadian and
international, for over thirty years and has enjoyed a number of key technical
and managerial positions with major players in the oil and gas sector, including
BP Canada, Suncor Incl, Agip Canada Ltd., and Husky Oil. In the mid-1990s, Mr
Anton founded Pyramid Energy. The company was sold last year to another local
resource company.
Hany Elsharkawi, Ph.D, P.Eng, General Manager Egypt, aged 55
Dr. Hany Elsharkawi serves as General Manager, Egypt and is responsible for
managing all aspects of operations, exploration , business development and
government relations in Egypt. He holds a B.Sc (1967) from the University of
Alexandria as well as an M.Sc (1971) and Ph. D. (1975) from the University of
Manitoba. He is a member of APEGGA, SEG and CSEG Professional organisations.
During his career Dr. Elsharkawi has been involved in projects in Canada,
U.S.A., Australia, Egypt, U.K., Libya, Tunisia, Yemen, Bulgaria and Venezuela.
He has been active in the oil and gas industry for over 28 years with Shell and
Mobil.
Keith Howells, M.Sc., P.Geol, General Manager Tunisia, aged 56
Keith Howells is the General Manager of the Company's Tunisian operations and is
responsible for managing all aspects of operations, exploration, business
development and government relations in Tunisia. He holds a BSc. (1969) from the
university of London, U.K. as well as an M.Sc. (1975) from the University of New
Brunswick, Canada. He is a certified Professional Geologist and a member of the
American Association of Petroleum Geologists. He has been involved in projects
in Canada, the U.S.A., the U.K., Libya, Yemen, Tunisia, Syria, Columbia,
Equador, Mexico, Peru, Venezuela, India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. He has been
active in the oil and gas industry for over 27 years with Shell, Amerada and
Occidental Oil and Gas Corporation.
Lorne LeClerc, B.Sc(Geol), Exploration Manager, Tunisia, aged 48
Lorned LeClerc is the exploration manager for Ecumed Petroleum Tunisia, Ltd., a
wholly owned subsidiary of Centurion. He obtained his BSc. Degree with
specialisation in geology from the University of Alberta in 1982. He has over 16
years' experience in the petroleum geology field with 11 years in the
international geological arena. During the course of his career, he has worked
in over 20 countries.
Mike Zayat, P.Geol, Vice-President, Exploration and Business Development, aged
56
Mike Zayat serves as Vice-President Exploration and Business Development of
Centurion. Mr Zayat holds a B.Sc degree in Geology (1968) from the University of
Alexandria. During his professional career, spanning more than 30 years, he has
held technical and managerial positions with energy companies operating in
Canada and internationally. His international experience includes the Middle
East. North Africa, Turkey and Azerbaijan. Mr Zayat is involved in the creation
of long term growth for Centurion, by overseeing the exploration and the
business development activities.
IMPORTANT NOTICE
Certain statements in this News Release constitute forward-looking statements,
including statements regarding possible future production levels and development
plans. Such forward-looking statements involve risks, uncertainties and other
factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the
Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or
achievements expressed or implied by such forward looking statements.
Contacts: Said Arrata, President and CEO
Barry Swan, CFO
Centurion Energy International Inc. 020 7929 5599
001 403 263 6002
Clive Carver
Joe Nally,
Williams de Broe plc 020 7588 7511
Chris Steele,
Holborn 020 7929 5599
-ends-
This information is provided by RNS
The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
END
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