Ann: Placement, development programme and reserve, page-22

re: Ann: VPE: Placement, development programm... VPE now have $59m in the bank, about $40m of which is free cash, after the coming year's $17m contribution to the CSG venture and another $2m for admin. is taken out.

They already have about 90m of the 886m ITC shares on issue.

I suppose then they could consider making a 10c/share offer for the remaining 796m ITC shares on issue, comprising 5c cash and about 5c in VPE scrip (say 1 VPE share for every 6 or 7 ITC).

That wouldn't be too lean, and with operations at the Cooper Basin JV anticipated to be producing oil again in the 2nd quarter of next year, plus the $8-9m cash in ITC to tide them over, they might even be able to do better on the cash component.

Very attractive to ITC shareholders, and very attractive to VPE, to get a clean 100% of the Cooper Basin oil project.

Mr Ed. would get a big cash payment, and his loan funds back, and yet still get to keep a decent exposure to the future upside of those lovely Cooper Basin assets that have been so unfortunately compromised by once-in-a-lifetime flooding.