Columbus Energy Resources : Corporate Presentation, Issue of Equity and TVR

Regulatory Story
Go to market news section
Columbus Energy Resources PLC - CERP Corporate Presentation, Issue of Equity and TVR Released 07:00 13-Feb-2020

RNS Number : 8288C

Columbus Energy Resources PLC

13 February 2020

13 February 2020

COLUMBUS ENERGY RESOURCES PLC

('Columbus' or the 'Company')

Corporate Presentation

Issue of Shares and Toting Voting Rights

Columbus, the oil and gas producer and explorer focused on onshore Trinidad and Suriname, with the ambition to grow in South America, has made a corporate update available on its website. To view it, please visit www.columbus-erp.com

The key highlights are:

· Testing of the Saffron Well in the Lower Cruse started early February 2020

· Logging results for the Middle Cruse confirm it is a valid secondary target for testing and development

· Prudent cash management - US$3.1m in cash (including US$0.62m in restricted cash) (as at 31 January 2020)

Leo Koot, Executive Chairman of Columbus, commented:

'The Company is currently testing the Saffron well in Trinidad and will update the market as the testing progresses. Given the time it has taken to drill and test the Saffron well, a number of investors have asked for a corporate update. We are pleased to report that there is no material change to our core strategy of testing and, subject to test results, appraising and developing the Saffron well and its surrounding acreage.

Logging results for the Middle Cruse have been interpreted and the Company believes that it confirms the Middle Cruse is a valid secondary target. In the event of negative or inconclusive testing of the Lower Cruse, the Company intends to immediately test the Middle Cruse. The Company expects to be able to produce from the Middle Cruse at commercial rates.

We continue to operate our base production in the most efficient manner possible.

In the Trinity Inniss field, we continue to work with Predator (our joint venture partner), the Ministry of Energy and Energy Industries and Heritage to move to continuous injection of CO2.

In Suriname, we move steadily towards being ready for an Extended Well Test in H2 2020.

Management continue to believe in the Company's prospects and a number of the Executive Management team have elected to convert their Executive Salary Options into ordinary shares.

We look forward to updating the market on each of these projects as they develop and reach relevant milestones. '

Executive Salary Scheme

As previously announced, the Company's directors and executive managers ('Executive Management') currently receive 50% of their fees in Company shares (the 'Executive Salary Scheme' and 'Remuneration Shares'). The Executive Salary Scheme has assisted the Company in both managing its cash and also ensuring Executive Management interests are aligned with the Company's shareholders.

The Remuneration Shares take the form of nil cost options, which provided the Company with more flexibility but does not change the number of shares to be issued in any way or provide any additional value to the Executive Management.

As at 31 December 2019, the fees to be settled by the issue of Remuneration Shares equated to 36,515,008 shares (equal to approximately 4.3% of the Company's current issued share capital).

Remuneration Shares are calculated monthly using a fixed share price therefore the timing of issuance of Remuneration Shares is not relevant to the number of Remuneration Shares issued. The fixed share price has ranged between 3.5p and 5.1p.

The Company has received an election from certain Executive Management members (including Mr Koot) to convert their options into ordinary shares of the Company, as is their contractual right pursuant to the Executive Salary Scheme. As such, the Company will issue 15,169,886 new ordinary shares to those Executive Management members (the 'Executive Management Shares'), representing 1.8% of the 848,260,742 ordinary shares in issue prior to the issuance of the Executive Management Shares. The Company expects to record the issue price of the shares in its books at the closing share price on the day before issuance.

The relevant Executive Management members have stated that they have no intention of selling the Executive Management Shares in the near future.

The Company will otherwise continue to operate the Executive Salary Scheme (or the Amended Executive Salary Scheme as announced in September 2019) as circumstances dictate.

Prior to today, no ordinary shares related to the Executive Salary Scheme have been issued to (or sold) by any of the Executive Management.

The Executive Management Shares will rank pari passu in all respects with the Company's existing ordinary shares. An application will be made for the Executive Management Shares to be admitted to trading on AIM, ('Admission'), and it is expected that Admission will become effective and that dealings will commence on or around 19 February 2020.

Contractor Shares

The Company continues to employ the Contractor Shares scheme to settle fees otherwise due to various contractors. The Company aims to utilise the Contractor Shares Scheme in a prudent manner, balancing cash management with equity dilution.

The relevant services have now been provided and therefore the Company will issue 9,500,000 new ordinary shares to those contractors (the 'New Contractor Shares'), representing 1.1% of the 848,260,742 ordinary shares in issue prior to the issuance of the New Contractor Shares.

The New Contractor Shares will rank pari passuin all respects with the Company's existing ordinary shares.An application will be madefor the New Contractor Shares to be admitted to trading on AIM, ('Admission'), and it is expected that Admission will become effective and that dealings will commence on or around 19 February 2020.

Total Voting Rights

For the purposes of the Disclosure and Transparency Rules of the Financial Conduct Authority, the Board of Columbus hereby notifies the market of the following:

As at the date of this announcement, and after the issuance of the Executive Management Shares and the New Contractor Shares, the Company's issued share capital consists of 872,930,628 ordinary shares with a nominal value of 0.05p each, with voting rights ('Ordinary Shares'). The Company does not hold any Ordinary Shares in Treasury.

Therefore, the total number of Ordinary Shares in the Company with voting rights is 872,930,628. This figure may be used by Shareholders in the Company as denominator for the calculations by which they may determine if they are required to notify their interest in, or a change to their interest in, the Company under the Financial Conduct Authority's Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules.

This announcement is inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of Regulation 596/2014.

Qualified Person's statement:

The information contained in this document has been reviewed and approved by Stewart Ahmed, Chief Technical Officer (Trinidad), for Columbus Energy Resources plc. Mr Ahmed has a BSc in Mining and Petroleum Engineering and is a member of the Society of Petroleum Engineers. Mr Ahmed has over 33 years of relevant experience in the oil industry.

Contact Information

Columbus Energy Resources plc Leo Koot / Gordon Stein / Tony Hawkins	[phone]
VSA Capital Limited Financial Adviser andBroker Andrew Monk / Andrew Raca	[phone]
Beaumont Cornish Limited Nominated Adviser Roland Cornish / Rosalind Hill Abrahams	[phone]

Notes to Editors:

Columbus Energy Resources Plc is an oil and gas producer and explorer focused on onshore Trinidad and Suriname. In Trinidad, the Columbus Energy group has five producing fields, one appraisal/development project and a highly prospective exploration portfolio in the South West Peninsula ('SWP'), which lies in the extreme southwest of Trinidad and consists of stacked shallow and deep prospects. In Suriname, the Company has recently secured an onshore appraisal/development project. Columbus aims to create transformational growth by developing its portfolioin a capital efficient and disciplined manner.

Columbus is guided by the following core values; safe and sustainable, stronger together, creative excellence, positive energy, totally trusted and personally responsible.

The Company is led by an experienced Board and senior management team with supportive shareholders and intends on leveraging its expertise and experience to build an attractive and diversified portfolio of assets across South America in order to build an oil production led South American exploration business.

To find out more, visitwww.columbus-erp.comor follow us on Twitter@Columbus_ERP.

This information is provided by RNS, the news service of the London Stock Exchange. RNS is approved by the Financial Conduct Authority to act as a Primary Information Provider in the United Kingdom. Terms and conditions relating to the use and distribution of this information may apply. For further information, please contact [e-mail] or visit www.rns.com.

END

MSCBRGDDGXBDGGD

Close

London Stock Exchange plc is not responsible for and does not check content on this Website. Website users are responsible for checking content. Any news item (including any prospectus) which is addressed solely to the persons and countries specified therein should not be relied upon other than by such persons and/or outside the specified countries. Terms and conditions, including restrictions on use and distribution apply.

©2014London Stock Exchange plc. All rights reserved

Corporate Presentation, Issue of Equity and TVR - RNS