Philippines (SC 55) Red Emperor remains committed to its interest in Block SC 55 in the Philippines and as announced previously, is seeking government approval to have its equity interest increased (from 15% to 37.5%) so a work program consisting of geological and interpretive studies can be undertaken. Red Emperor participated in a USD $25m exploration well (Hawkeye) within the block in 2015 and contributed in excess of AUD $5m towards drilling costs. Over USD $50m has been spent exploring the block to date and a number of drill-ready targets remain, including the “Cinco” gas prospect which has a best estimate prospective resource of 1.6tcf recoverable gas. Given the Hawkeye well discovered gas and a working petroleum system relatively close to Cinco, Red Emperor believes that Block SC 55 remains a key asset for the Company to maintain exposure to. Unfortunately, the delay by the Philippines Department of Energy to ratify the redistribution of equity (following the withdrawal of a JV partner) has been outside the control of Red Emperor, although the Company is pushing the controlling JV partners for a swift resolution, so the intended geological interpretive work program can begin. It has simply not been possible for the Company (or the JV) to spend further money on exploration and evaluation in respect of SC-55 while this remains unresolved, despite the Board being of the view that significant value can still be extracted. Georgia The Company continues to be frustrated by the protracted and obscure sale process being conducted by the directors of Strait Oil & Gas Ltd, of which Red Emperor remains a 20% shareholder. As stated previously, Red Emperor is not involved in the negotiations and has no transparency as to whether a sale of Block VIa is likely or not. The carrying value of this asset was written down to nil some time ago and the Company does not consider its shareholding to be of a core nature to its ongoing business activities or strategy. Corporate While Red Emperor retains its commitment to its existing assets, it recognises that the exploration expenditure on them has been curtailed since the end of 2015. The Company has accordingly been actively reviewing appropriate new opportunities. The Board continues to receive numerous proposals on a weekly basis for corporate transaction opportunities within the oil and gas sector. All of these opportunities are assessed and some have been worked and evaluated to an extremely high level, by not only the board, which includes technical director Mr. Nathan Rayner, but also by external consultants engaged by Red Emperor. The Company has taken a disciplined approach to assessing these potential opportunities, and has been mindful of the need to preserve shareholders’ funds and to pursue only prospects that it reasonably expected could deliver value to shareholders. Level 1, 35 Richardson Street, West Perth WA 6005 | Tel: +61 8 9212 0102 | redemperorresources.com ABN 99 124 734 961 As recently as late March, the Company was in final negotiations in relation to the acquisition of a farm-in interest for an exploration project located in Tanzania. While the terms sheet was at final stage and all material terms of the acquisition agreed, a subsequent and substantial renegotiation by the vendor resulted in Red Emperor terminating all further negotiations. Prior to this and over the past four (4) months, the Company has presented transaction terms to three (3) separate parties in the oil & gas sector contemplating an acquisition, a farm-in and a joint investment strategy respectively. While none of these proposed transactions have completed, Red Emperor continues to seek opportunities it believes can complement its existing assets. It should also be noted that worldwide exploration and development activity within the oil & gas sector are at very low levels and are expected to remain that way for the foreseeable future. This does not prohibit Red Emperor from seeking opportunities in the marketplace; in fact, the Company remains enthusiastic about how it might deploy some or all of its cash resources in the current environment. However, it does highlight the need for the Company to continue to be fiscally prudent with its existing assets. Red Emperor and its Board would like to thank shareholders for their continued support and patience and look forward to providing them with regular updates with respect to the Company’s corporate activity over the coming quarter.
RMP Price at posting:
2.3¢ Sentiment: Hold Disclosure: Held