Posting of Annual Report & Share Consolidation

RNS Number : 7751T

Parkmead Group (The) PLC

22 November 2013

 

22 November 2013

The Parkmead Group plc

("Parkmead", "the Company" or "the Group")

Posting of Annual Report & Share Consolidation

Parkmead announces that it is today posting its Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2013 to the Company's shareholders. The Annual Report and Accounts is also being made available on the Company's website.

Accompanying the Annual Report, the Company has also posted to shareholders the Notice of AGM which contains details of a share consolidation (the "Share Consolidation") which the Company is proposing to undertake, and which shareholders are being asked to vote on at the AGM. A summary of the background to and reasons for the Share Consolidation is set out below.

Share Consolidation

The Company has made considerable progress over the past twelve to eighteen months. Net oil and gas production has grown by approximately 400 per cent and revenues have increased significantly to £4.1m (2012: £2.9m). To reinforce the trading and financial progress made by the Company during this period, the Directors believe that it would be appropriate and beneficial to both the Company and its shareholders to undertake a Share Consolidation.

The Board has therefore decided to seek Shareholder approval at the Annual General Meeting for the Share Consolidation based on every 15 Existing Ordinary Shares being consolidated into 1 New Ordinary Share.

The Board believes that the consolidation of share capital will result in a more appropriate number of shares in issue for a company of Parkmead's size and may also help to make the New Ordinary Shares more attractive to investors going forward.

As at 14 November 2013, the Company had 1,036,202,278 Existing Ordinary Shares in issue. With shares of low denominations, small absolute movements in the share price can represent large percentage movements resulting in high volatility.  The Share Consolidation is expected to assist in reducing the volatility in the Company's share price and enable a more consistent valuation of the Company.  The Board also believes that the bid/offer spread on shares priced at low absolute levels can be disproportionate to the share price and therefore to the detriment of shareholders.

Following the Share Consolidation, Shareholders will still hold the same proportion of the Company's ordinary share capital as before the Share Consolidation. Other than a change in nominal value, the New Ordinary Shares will carry equivalent rights under the Articles of Association to the Existing Ordinary Shares.

The Annual General Meeting of the Company has been convened for Monday, 16 December 2013.

Enquiries:

The Parkmead Group plc
Tom Cross (Executive Chairman)	[phone]
Ryan Stroulger (Chief Financial Officer)	[phone]
Charles Stanley Securities (Financial Adviser, NOMAD and Corporate Broker to Parkmead)
Marc Milmo	[phone]
Karri Vuori	[phone]
Carl Holmes	[phone]
College Hill Associates (PR Adviser to Parkmead)
David Simonson	[phone]
Alexandra Roper	[phone]

Notes to Editors:

1.   Parkmead is an independent, upstream oil and gas company that is listed on AIM on the London Stock Exchange (symbol: PMG). Parkmead is focused on growth in the oil and gas exploration and production sector, targeting transactions at both asset and corporate levels.

2.   In November 2011, Parkmead completed the acquisition of stakes in UK Blocks 48/1a, 47/5b and 48/1c containing the Platypus gas field and the Possum gas prospect. Mapping indicates the potential for Platypus and Possum to contain up to 180 and 100 billion cubic feet of gas in place, respectively.

3.   In December 2011, Parkmead agreed to acquire stakes in blocks 47/4d, 47/5d, 47/10c and 48/6c in the UK Southern North Sea, which contain the large Pharos gas prospect. These two gas-basin acquisitions were important, steps in the first stage of Parkmead's development as a new independent energy company.

4.   In March 2012, Parkmead agreed to acquire a portfolio of Netherlands onshore assets comprising four producing gas fields and two oil fields from Dyas B.V. This acquisition provided the Group with its first producing fields. At the effective date of the acquisition, 1 January 2012, these assets were producing at a rate of approximately 2,000 boepd, delivering approximately 300 boepd net to Parkmead. In addition, the portfolio provides the Group with future oil developments at Ottoland and Papekop. This acquisition completed in August 2012.

5.   In May 2012, Parkmead launched its recommended acquisition of DEO Petroleum plc ("DEO"), to be implemented by way of a Court-sanctioned Scheme of Arrangement (the "Scheme"). The Scheme became effective on the 9th August 2012. As a result, Parkmead now owns 52% and is operator of the UKCS Perth oil field, which is targeting Proven and Probable (2P) reserves of 41.3 million barrels of oil (21.5 million barrels of oil net to Parkmead).

6.   In October 2012, Parkmead was provisionally awarded several new licences under the UKCS 27th Licensing Round. The six new licences comprise interests in a total of 25 offshore blocks or partial blocks across the Central North Sea, West of Scotland and West of Shetland. Parkmead also applied for certain licences in the 27th Round, within the UKCS Southern Gas Basin, which are yet to be awarded by the UK Government due to their location close to, or in, certain Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) and Special Protection Areas (SPAs).

7.   In July 2013, Parkmead completed its recommended offer for Lochard Energy Group plc by way of a Scheme of Arrangement. This gave Parkmead a 10% interest in the producing Athena oil field.

8.   Through its wholly owned subsidiary, Aupec Limited, the Parkmead Group provides petroleum benchmarking and economics expertise to a wide range of government bodies and international oil and gas companies. Aupec has to date worked with over 100 governments, national oil companies, majors and independents, across the world, as well as a number of multi-national agencies such as the European Commission and the World Bank. Aupec is currently undertaking an important benchmarking project for a group of the world's largest super-major oil companies.

For further information please refer to Parkmead's website at www.parkmeadgroup.com.

 

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