TIDMHUR
RNS Number : 1860P
Hurricane Energy PLC
08 June 2020
8 June 2020
Hurricane Energy plc
("Hurricane" or the "Company")
Board Changes
&
Operational Update
Hurricane Energy plc, the UK based oil and gas company focused
on hydrocarbon resources in naturally fractured basement
reservoirs, announces changes to the Company's board of directors
("Board") and provides an operational update.
Board Changes
Dr Robert Trice has resigned as Chief Executive Officer and a
director of Hurricane by mutual agreement with the Board. Dr Trice
will remain available to assist the Company during a transition
period of six months.
Beverley Smith has been appointed Interim Chief Executive
Officer. Ms Smith had a successful 30 year career with BG Group and
has been a non-executive director of the Company since December
2019. She brings a wealth of production geology and field
development leadership experience in the UK and internationally,
which will be invaluable as the Company continues its transition
from pure exploration towards a maturing production company.
Richard Chaffe, who has been Acting Chief Financial Officer
since February 2020, has been confirmed as Chief Financial Officer
and an executive director of the Company. Mr Chaffe joined the
Company in 2016 as Head of Finance.
Roy Kelly, who has been the Kerogen nominated non-executive
director since 2016, has stepped down from the Board and has been
replaced with immediate effect by Dr Alan Parsley, a member of the
Advisory Board of Kerogen Capital. Dr Parsley is a geologist with
over 50 years' experience in the oil and gas industry, primarily at
Shell where he held senior positions including Global Head of
Exploration, Head of New Business Ventures and E&P Planning,
Chief Executive of Syria Shell and Chairman of Shell Australia.
Jason Cheng has stepped down from his Alternate Director
position in relation to Kerogen's nominated director. Leonard Tao
will continue in this role, acting as alternate to Dr Parsley.
These changes to the Board have taken place with immediate
effect. Biographies of Beverley Smith, Dr Alan Parsley and Richard
Chaffe are included at the end of this announcement and are also
available on the Company's website at www.hurricaneenergy.com .
Board Committees
A Technical Committee of the Board has been established,
formalising an existing arrangement where certain members of the
Board have provided oversight of critical technical matters and
Reserves and Resources disclosures. Dr David Jenkins, independent
Non-Executive Director since 2013, will Chair the Technical
Committee.
An Environmental, Social, and Governance ("ESG") Committee of
the Board has also been established to oversee and report on the
impacts of Company operations and products. The Board recognises
the importance of embedding ESG considerations into Company
strategy, to justify our societal licence to operate and improve
sustainability, as well as future financial performance.
Terms of Reference for the Technical Committee and ESG Committee
are available on the Company's website.
Lancaster Early Production System ("EPS") Operational Update
Well 205/21a-6 has been producing on its own since 17 May 2020
at a steady rate of c.10,300 bopd with a stable water cut of
approximately 8%. In line with the Company's previously announced
testing programme for the 205/21a-6 well, on 5 June 2020, the choke
size was increased, resulting in a production increase to c.12,000
bopd. The well will continue to be monitored, with further
incremental increases in production possible depending on observed
performance, in order to determine its optimal sustainable
rate.
Outlook
Given the challenges experienced in sustaining the target
plateau production rate of 18,000 bopd net from the existing two
well configuration on natural flow, the Technical Committee will
conduct a review of all available information, including recent
dynamic performance data, and will re-examine the full range of
possible geological and reservoir models. Any revised
interpretations will be factored into an updated Competent Person's
Report, which the Company currently anticipates will be released no
later than the end of Q1 2021.
Given the difficult macroeconomic backdrop and the need to
strengthen the Company's balance sheet, the Board is keenly focused
on the need to increase production, whilst also keeping capital
expenditure focused and to a minimum. Principal among the near-term
tasks of the Interim Chief Executive Officer will be to propose a
revised forward activity programme in support of those objectives.
The forward activity programme will be based on a prudent
interpretation of field performance to date, including, for
conservatism, the possibility of a shallower oil water contact. The
Company will provide an update on the forward activity programme,
including scope, objectives, costs and timing, once it is adopted
by the Board.
Steven McTiernan, Chairman of Hurricane, commented:
" The Board commends Dr Trice's pioneering efforts to explore
the viability of the unique basement oil play west of the
Shetlands. His dedication over a period of 16 years has built
Hurricane into a recognised UK operator today, culminating in the
outstanding success of delivering first oil in May 2019.
"As we move into a phase where the focus is on enhancing
production, I am very pleased that Beverley has taken on the role
of Interim CEO where her extensive subsurface and development
experience will be of huge benefit to the Company.
"In evaluating options for the forward work programme against an
uncertain macroeconomic backdrop, we will prioritise early low-cost
production with the capital discipline needed to achieve financial
resilience."
Contacts:
Hurricane Energy plc +44 (0)1483 862
Beverley Smith, Interim Chief Executive Officer 820
Stifel Nicolaus Europe Limited
Nominated Adviser & Joint Corporate Broker
Callum Stewart / Ashton Clanfield +44 (0)20 7710 7600
Morgan Stanley & Co. International plc
Joint Corporate Broker
Andrew Foster / Tom Perry / Alex Smart +44 (0)20 7425 8000
Vigo Communications
Public Relations
Patrick d'Ancona / Ben Simons
hurricane@vigocomms.com +44 (0)20 7390 0230
About Hurricane
Hurricane was established to discover, appraise and develop
hydrocarbon resources associated with naturally fractured basement
reservoirs. The Company's acreage is concentrated on the Rona
Ridge, in the West of Shetland region of the UK Continental
Shelf.
The Lancaster field (100% owned by Hurricane) is the UK's first
producing basement field. Hurricane is pursuing a phased
development of Lancaster, starting with an Early Production System
consisting of two wells tied-back to the Aoka Mizu FPSO.
Hydrocarbons were introduced to the FPSO system on 11 May 2019 and
the first oil milestone was achieved on 4 June 2019.
In September 2018, Spirit Energy farmed-in to 50% of the Lincoln
and Warwick assets, committing to a phased work programme targeting
sanction of an initial stage of full field development.
Glossary
bopd Barrels of oil per day
FPSO Floating production storage and offloading
vessel
===========================================
Biographies
Beverley Smith
Ms Smith is a chartered geologist and an accomplished business
leader with more than 30 years' experience in the upstream oil and
gas sector, having delivered a portfolio of achievements in a
successful international career with BG Group, most recently as
Vice President Exploration & Growth for Europe. Ms Smith has a
background in development and production geology and subsurface
management, notably in Trinidad (Hibiscus, Poinsettia and Ixora
Fields), Tunisia (Hasdrubal Field) and various operated
developments in the U.K. including Mercury, Neptune, Minerva,
Apollo, Fleming, Drake and Jackdaw Fields and other non-operated
developments. Ms Smith is currently the President of the Petroleum
Exploration Society of Great Britain and holds a B.Sc. in Geology
and an M.Sc. in Petroleum Geology.
Richard Chaffe
Mr Chaffe is a Chartered Accountant with over 10 years'
experience in the industry in the UK. Before joining Hurricane as
Head of Finance, he was Finance Director of the UK subsidiary of
EOG Resources Inc., an independent oil and gas exploration and
production company with a market value of over $35 billion. Prior
to this, he worked for Ernst & Young for nine years, split
between client facing work and working as part of an audit quality
team within the London office.
Dr Alan Parsley
Dr Parsley is a geologist with over 50 years' experience in the
oil and gas industry, primarily at Shell where he held senior
positions including Global Head of Exploration, Head of New
Business Ventures and E&P Planning, Chief Executive of Syria
Shell and Chairman of Shell Australia. He currently serves on the
Advisory Board of Kerogen Capital and holds non-executive roles on
a number of Kerogen portfolio companies, including Chairman of both
Zennor Petroleum and Pandion Energy and board member of Buried Hill
Energy. He formerly served as a Shell nominee director of the
Boards of Al Furat Petroleum Company and Woodside Petroleum Ltd.
and was a member of the Court of Heriot-Watt University from 2005
to 2011. Dr Parsley graduated from the University of Edinburgh and
holds a BSc and a PhD in Geology.
AIM Schedule 2(g) Disclosures
Alan John Parsley, aged 76, has held the following directorships
and/or partnerships in the past five years:
Current Directorships/Partnerships Previous Directorships/Partnerships
Buried Hill Energy (Cyprus) Public Petroceltic International
Company Limited plc
Pandion Energy AS
Zennor Petroleum Limited
Petroceltic International plc, a company in which Dr Parsley was
a director was placed into examinership by the High Court of
Ireland on 15 June 2016.
Richard Paul Chaffe, aged 42, has not held any directorships in
the past five years.
There are no further disclosures required to be made pursuant to
Schedule 2 paragraph (g) of the AIM Rules.
Inside Information
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under the market abuse regulation (EU no. 596/2014). Upon the
publication of this announcement via regulatory information service
this inside information is now considered to be in the public
domain.
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END
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