With the success of Gingin West-1 Well and Red Gully-1 Wells in Exploration Permit EP-389 in the Perth Basin, Empire Oil & Gas NL (EGO) will be focusing its attention and resources on the development and further exploration of its Perth Basin permits. In that regard, Key Petroleum Limited and Empire have reached agreement that will see Key acquire Gulliver Productions Pty Ltd which owns Empire’s Canning Basin permits. The consideration for this transaction will be the issue to Empire of 52 million ordinary shares in Key. As part of this agreement, Key will also assign to Empire a 22.5% interest in Exploration Permit EP 437 in the northern part of the onshore Perth Basin. This agreement will be subject to the approval of the shareholders of Key.
Subject to the approval of this agreement by the shareholders of Key, Empire’s Managing Director, Mr Craig Marshall, will become a director and Chairman of Key. Empire believes that this agreement, if approved by the Key shareholders, will be beneficial to both companies. For Empire, it will allow Empire to concentrate all its management and technical time in completing the development of the Red Gully and Gingin West gas discoveries as well as following up the old Gingin-1 and Gingin-2 gas discoveries to explore for and find additional gas discoveries to process through the Red Gully Gas Plant soon to be constructed. Empire also has a large 5 million acre exploration holding in the onshore Perth Basin and it is a priority for Empire to explore these valuable assets and to discover additional oil and gas reserves.
Managing Director, Craig Marshall stated “This transaction provides Empire with a strategic stake in Key Petroleum which has oil production in the Weald Basin in the United Kingdom and provides Key with the opportunity to develop Empire’s Canning Basin assets. As previously stated, Empire will continue to focus its oil and gas production and exploration efforts and expenditure in the Perth Basin, Western Australia. In the EP 389 Permit alone, Empire considers future potential recoverable reserves, which can be processed through the Red Gully Plant in the Wannamal and Deep, Gingin-4 and Deep and Gingin-5 and the Bootine Deep, are estimated to be 205 billion cubic feet of gas and 9.2 million barrels of condensate.”
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