International Resource News
International Resource News focuses on the global oil, gas and mining industries and provides concise, unbiased information throughout the day. This includes financial results, drilling announcements and strategic partnerships in this centuries-old, but ever-changing sector.
Below you will find a recent sample of the publication.
Norsk Hydro to Merge Assets with Statoil
Norsk Hydro (NYSE: NHY; Oslo: NHY; Berlin: NOH1), a Norway-based company that develops and produces oil and gas, will merge its oil and gas assets with Statoil ASA (OSE: STL, NYSE: STO) (Statoil), a Norway-based oil and gas exploration company.
The company assets will merge with assets of Statoil to create a new company that will be owned 32.7% by the company shareholders and 67.3% by Statoil shareholders.
The new company will have proven oil and gas reserves of 6.3 billion barrels of oil equivalents, with a production capacity of 1.9 million barrels per day in 2007. Norsk Hydro will from now onwards focus on building itself into a global aluminium corporation with the sale of the oil and gas assets.
The company chairman, Jan Reinas, has said, ‘Both Hydro and Statoil have developed competence and technologies acknowledged to be among the best in the global energy industry. By combining forces, the new company will be a highly competent and financially strong Norwegian-based energy champion, well positioned to ensure continued domestic excellence and pursue international business opportunities for long-term growth. The industry faces an increasingly challenging international landscape. To merge now makes perfect sense.’
BG Group to Make Further Investments in UK North Sea
BG Group Plc (LSE: BG), a UK-based company that produces and distributes energy, has entered into a sale and purchase agreement with ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP) (COP) for the acquisition of COP’s interests in the Armada and Everest fields of the North Sea.
The company will acquire an 11.45% interest in the Armada field and a 1.0134% interest in the Everest field from COP, increasing the company’s investment in the Armada field to 58.22% and that of the Everest field to 59.3234%. The company will also acquire COP’s 16.89% interest in Block 22/14a. The total purchase price for all of these assets will be around USD143m.
The company executive vice president for BG Europe and Central Asia, Mark Carne, has said, ‘I am delighted that we have agreed these purchases which increase our stake holding and control in two key oil and gas fields in the UK Continental Shelf. The strengthening of our position in the Armada hub will not only increase our equity share of production from the field but will also enhance value from the tie-backs of the Seymour and Maria fields and prospective future production from our Norwegian interests across the median line. The increased stake holding in Armada and Everest reinforces our commitment to the North Sea and continues our investment in the region.’
Ashton Board of Directors Approves Amalgamation
Ashton Mining of Canada, Inc (TSX: ACA), a Canada-based company with diamond exploration projects in Canada, has announced that the company board of directors has approved an amalgamation of the company with Stornoway Diamond Corporation (TSX: SWY) (Stornoway).
An earlier takeover bid by Stornoway to acquire all issued and outstanding shares of the company had expired on October 16, 2006. On completion of the takeover offer, Stornoway has acquired 75.6% of the outstanding common shares of the company.
The company has announced a special meeting of shareholders to be held January 15, 2007, to approve an amalgamation of the company with Stornoway, through which the company will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Stornoway.
Petrosearch Enters Into Partnership for Barnett Shale Assets
Petrosearch Energy Corporation (OTCBB:PTSG), a US-based company that explores for oil and gas, has formed a partnership, DDJET Limited LLP, for the development of certain Barnett Shale properties in the Fort Worth Basin, US.
The company has entered into the partnership with Metroplex Barnett Shale LLC, a subsidiary of Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE: XOM), and Cinco County Barnett Shale LLC, a privately held US-based company, for the development of these properties. The partnership currently owns an eight-county contract area, as well as 100 miles of pipeline.
The company chief executive officer, Richard Dole, has said, ‘We are pleased to have completed this important agreement. Given the contribution of both the upstream and downstream assets by all of the partners, we are confident that the overall economics of our new ownership interest is strong. We look forward to a long-term relationship with our partners to develop this significant resource base.’
Pengrowth Energy Announces Cash Distribution
Pengrowth Energy Trust (TSX: PGF.A, PGF.B; NYSE: PGH), a Canada-based holding company that acquires and develops oil and natural gas properties and processing facilities through a subsidiary, Pengrowth Corporation, has announced a cash distribution for the company unit holders.
The trustees of the company have decided on a distribution of CDD0.25 per unit, payable on January 15, 2007 to unit holders on record as of December 29, 2006.
The company has announced that the cumulative distribution for the last 12 months is CDD3.00 per trust unit.
Peru Copper Identifies New Mineralised Zone
Peru Copper, Inc (TSX: PCR; AMEX: CUP; BVL: CUP), a Canada-based mineral exploring company engaged in mining for copper in Peru, has discovered new mineralization on drilling at the Toromocho deposit.
The company has discovered this copper-zinc mineralization adjacent to a previously-discovered copper deposit. The new zone of mineralization, named as the Eastern zone, has returned an average of 0.40% copper, 0.42% zinc, 13.24 g/t silver and 0.05 g/t gold.
The company executive chairman, J David Lowell, has said, ‘We are very pleased with the discovery of a new deposit at Toromocho and are fast tracking both additional drilling and initial metallurgical testing. Importantly, if metal recoveries are positive and mineral reserves are ultimately delineated, the copper-zinc material at this newly discovered target may be used as mill feed for the early years of the Toromocho Project further enhancing the project's return….’
He added, ‘Peru Copper is continuing to optimise the economics of the Toromocho ore body in parallel with the completion by late 2007 of a full feasibility study. As part of this ongoing optimisation and based on positive initial leach test results, Peru Copper is studying the economics of a heap leach SX/EW operation that will target the chalcocite ore in the upper 200 metres of the deposit. This may allow initial production to begin earlier and with a lower upfront investment allowing the company to take advantage of the outlook for continuing robust base metal prices.’
