IT would seem, on the face of it at least, that Exoma Energy’s partnership with JP Morgan has found it a farm-out partner and strategic investor.
In a trading halt announcement to the Australian Securities Exchange this morning, Exoma told the market it requested the halt ahead of an announcement about a “material transaction relating to a farmout and strategic placement”.
While Exoma has been drilling away in the Galilee Basin with CNOOC, it engaged the services of JP Morgan to put the ASX-listed company out in front of potential investors in Australia and North America.
It said it should make the announcement before the resumption of trading on Tuesday, with shareholders left to speculate whether CNOOC is taking a larger slice in the joint venture or a new partner is coming on board.
Exoma currently has a 50% stake in a joint venture with CNOOC, which is spending the first $50 million of joint exploration costs across the JV’s five Galilee permits to earn its 50%.
