21 December 2023
Longboat Energy plc
("Longboat Energy", "Longboat" or the "Company")
Completion of SE Asia Acquisition
Longboat Energy, an emerging full-cycle E&P company active in Norway and Malaysia, is pleased to announce the completion of the acquisition of privately held Topaz Number One Limited ("Topaz"), thereby increasing its working interest in the Production Sharing Contract over Block 2A offshore Sarawak, Malaysia ("Block 2A") to 52.5%.
Longboat now holds an operated 52.5% interest in Block 2A, offshore Sarawak Malaysia, containing the giant 'Kertang' prospect, simplifying the process towards a positive well decision and the potential introduction of an additional funding partner prior to drilling.
Having worked closely with Topaz and its owners over the past twelve months on Block 2A and other acquisition opportunities, Longboat made the decision to accelerate the building of a full-cycle E&P business in SE Asia through the acquisition of Topaz and the addition of James Menzies and Pierre Eliet to the Company's management team as Executive Chairman SE Asia and Director SE Asia respectively.
Helge Hammer, Chief Executive of Longboat Energy, commented:
"We are pleased to have completed the corporate acquisition of Topaz, which increases our interest in a large exploration block in a region that has seen considerable exploration success recently. Petronas announced that they have recorded 19 exploration discoveries, 13 of which were made offshore Sarawak, and two exploration-appraisal successes, contributing over 1 billion barrels of oil equivalent to new resources for Malaysia in 2023. Clearly, we are in the right address.
The Longboat team has extensive experience and network in SE Asia, which combined with our in-house technical expertise, puts us in a strong position to deliver accelerated growth in the region."
Background
In February 2023, Longboat announced it had been awarded a 36.75% operated interest in a Production Sharing Contract for Block 2A alongside partners Petronas Carigali Sdn. Bhd (40%), Petroleum Sarawak Exploration & Production Sdn. Bhd. (7.5%) and Topaz Number One Limited (15.75%).
Block 2A is located offshore Sarawak, north-west of the prolific Central Luconia hydrocarbon province covering approx. 12,000km2 in water depths between 100 - 1,400 metres. One of the world's largest LNG facilities, the Bintulu LNG plant, is located onshore on the coast of Sarawak.
The main prospect on Block 2A is a large anticlinal structure called Kertang with a closure of over 100km2 at multiple levels and significant volume potential representing multiple trillions of cubic feet (TCF) of gas in stacked reservoirs. Seismic indicators for the presence of gas can be observed in the area and over the crest of the prospect.
At the same time, the Company indicated its belief that establishing a presence in the region would open-up further acquisition opportunities.
Transaction Detail
Under the terms of the sale and purchase agreement to acquire all of the issued share capital of Topaz Number One Limited, whose sole asset is a 15.75% interest in Block 2A (the "Acquisition"), the initial consideration is to be satisfied through an issue of new ordinary shares of 10 pence each in the Company ("Ordinary Shares") equivalent to US$100,000 based on the average closing price of such Ordinary Shares in the preceding ten days, representing 441,470 Ordinary Shares (the "Consideration Shares").
There are two further contingent payments to be made: firstly an amount of US$125,000 payable in cash or through a further issue of Ordinary Shares of an equivalent value, upon an exploration well being committed on Block 2A or a farm-out; and a further contingent amount of up to US$3,000,000 payable in cash or through a further issue of Ordinary Shares of an equivalent value, upon a discovery being made on Block 2A, depending on the resource size and the growth in the price of the Ordinary Shares measured over a two year period.
Admission
Application will be made for the Consideration Shares to be admitted to trading on AIM. It is expected that Admission will become effective and that dealings in the enlarged share capital, as described below, will commence at 8.00 a.m. on 29 December 2023.
Following Admission, the Company's enlarged issued ordinary share capital will consist of 57,108,136 ordinary shares, with the right to one vote each. The Company will hold no ordinary shares in treasury. Therefore, the total number of ordinary shares and voting rights in the Company will be 57,108,136. With effect from Admission, this figure may be used by shareholders in the Company as the denominator for the calculations by which they will determine if they are required to notify their interest in, or a change to their interest in, the share capital of the Company under the Financial Conduct Authority's Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules.
PDMR shareholdings
Following Admission, the interests of James Menzies (Chairman SE Asia) and Pierre Eliet (Director SE Asia) in the issued share capital of the Company will be as follows:
| | As at 21 December 2023 | | Immediately following Admission | ||
| Name | Number of Existing Ordinary Shares held | Percentage of Existing Ordinary Shares held | Number of ConsiderationShares | Number of ordinary shares held | Percentage of Enlarged Share Capital held |
| James Menzies | 101,137 | 0.18% | 220,735 | 321,872 | 0.56% |
| Pierre Eliet | - | - | 220,735 | 220,735 | 0.39% |
The information contained within this announcement is not considered to be inside information prior to its release.
Ends
Company Background
Longboat Energy was established at the end of 2019 to create a full-cycle E&P company through value accretive M&A and near-field exploration. Longboat's initial focus has been in Norway where the Company has drilled eight exploration wells resulting in five hydrocarbon discoveries, representing a technical 63% success rate.
In July 2023, Longboat completed a transaction with Japan Petroleum Exploration Co., Ltd ("JAPEX") to form a new joint venture company in Norway named Longboat JAPEX Norge AS. Under these arrangements, JAPEX will make a cash investment of up to US$50 million, of which US$16 million was paid on completion, for a 49.9% shareholding in of Longboat JAPEX Norge AS and provide the Joint Venture with a US$100 million Acquisition Financing Facility to finance acquisitions and associated development costs. Longboat retains 50.1% ownership in Longboat JAPEX Norge AS.
Also in July 2023, Longboat JAPEX Norge AS announced its first production acquisition in Norway of interests in the Statfjord satellite fields, Statfjord Øst and Sygna.
Longboat entered Malaysia in February 2023 through the award of a Production Sharing Contract for Block 2A, offshore Sarawak. Block 2A covers approx. 12,000km2 and is located in water depths of between 100-1,400 metres where a number of large prospects across multiple plays have been identified, with significant volume potential representing multiple trillions of cubic feet of gas.
Longboat's activities remain focused on creating a portfolio with a clear low-cost route to monetisation and low-carbon drilling and development opportunities, well aligned to Longboat's ESG targets which includes a corporate 'Net Zero' on a Scope 1 and 2 basis by 2050. | |
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