Preliminary Results

RNS Number : 6536X

Parkmead Group (The) PLC

21 November 2014

 



21 November 2014

The Parkmead Group plc

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

Preliminary Results for the year ended 30 June 2014

Parkmead, the UK and Netherlands focused oil and gas group, is pleased to report its preliminary results for the year ended 30 June 2014.

HIGHLIGHTS

Successful Exploration and Appraisal Programme

·      Awarded five additional oil and gas blocks in the UK 27th Licensing Round, resulting in a total award of 30 blocks across the North Sea, West of Scotland and West of Shetlands

·      Two new gas discoveries, at Pharos in the UK Southern Gas Basin and Diever West onshore the Netherlands

·      Site survey completed at the exciting Skerryvore oil prospect in the Central North Sea, ahead of exploration drilling planned for 2015

·      Post year-end, major licence awards in the UK 28th Licensing Round, gaining stakes in six new licences, spanning nine blocks across the Central and Southern North Sea

·      The new licence awards take Parkmead's total number of oil and gas blocks across the UK and the Netherlands to 61, with 48 of these being operated by the Group

Major Growth in Production. Significant Progress with Developments

·      Completed the acquisition of Lochard Energy Group PLC ("Lochard") in July 2013, providing Parkmead with its first UK oil production

·      Completed the acquisition of an additional 20% interest in the Athena oil field from EWE VERTRIEB GmbH ("EWE") in April 2014, trebling the Group's UK production, revenue and cash flow

·      Excellent progress made with the Perth Dolphin Lowlander (PDL) oil hub project. Successful joint development study and detailed subsurface work leading to a combined three field development

Strong Financial Performance delivering Maiden Profit

·      Revenue increased 506% to £24.7 million (2013: £4.1 million)

·      Doubling of gross profit to £3.2 million (2013: £1.6 million)

·      Maiden full year profit after tax of £1.2 million (2013: £5.6 million loss)

·      Total assets grew 139% to £127.4 million at 30 June 2014 (£53.4million at 30 June 2013)

·      Raised approximately US$66.0 million in January 2014, providing finance for continued growth

·      Cash balances of £46.3 million as at 30 June 2014

·      Continuing to explore optimum debt facilities to further increase financial strength

Parkmead's Executive Chairman, Tom Cross, commented:

"I am pleased to report another excellent year of progress. Parkmead has significantly increased its production base, providing major growth in revenue and cash flow. The Company has also recorded its first full year of profit, marking an important milestone.

These key achievements have been delivered through two important acquisitions, one corporate and one asset, both of which secured increases to Parkmead's oil production. These new interests complement Parkmead's existing oil and gas portfolio.

The Company also delivered successful drilling results with two new gas discoveries in the UK and the Netherlands, providing valuable near-term development opportunities. Parkmead was delighted to be awarded six new licences through the recently announced UKCS 28th Licensing Round, spanning nine attractive offshore blocks.

Parkmead now has a strong platform from which to become a key E&P player in the North Sea, and we look forward to updating shareholders as we continue to grow into 2015 and beyond."

For enquiries please contact:

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]
Instinctif Partners Limited (PR Adviser to Parkmead)
David Simonson	[phone]
Catherine Wickman	[phone]

CHAIRMAN'S STATEMENT

2014 has been an excellent year for Parkmead. Building on the momentum generated in 2013, the Company completed the acquisitions of Lochard Energy and an additional 20% working interest in the Athena oil field in the Central North Sea from EWE. These two acquisitions provided Parkmead with a substantial increase in production, revenue and cash flow.

The Company has also enjoyed a highly successful period of exploration activity. Two new gas fields have been discovered; Pharos in the UK Southern Gas Basin and Diever West in the Netherlands, discoveries that continue Parkmead's excellent drilling record. In addition, we are delighted with Parkmead's major awards in the recent UKCS 28th Licensing Round, consisting of six new oil and gas licences which span nine attractive North Sea blocks.

Operations and Portfolio Growth

The Group has made significant progress towards building an independent oil and gas company of considerable scale, by developing its current portfolio and adding value through focused acquisitions.

In line with its strategy, Parkmead has shown a strong appetite for value-adding transactions, at both the asset and corporate level. The Group's acquisitions to date have expanded its oil and gas asset portfolio, which now covers the entire asset life cycle from exploration through to development and producing assets. In July 2013, Parkmead completed the acquisition of Lochard Energy, a deal that provided the Company with its first UK oil production and increased its revenue and cash flow. In December 2013, Parkmead announced the acquisition of EWE's 20% working interest in the Athena oil field, which was completed in April 2014. The acquisition of this additional interest in Athena was a significant move for Parkmead as it trebled the Group's UK oil production, revenue and cash flow. We are currently working alongside the operator of Athena to maximise oil recovery from the field and extract further value from our two Athena related acquisitions. The Ocean Princess drilling rig is conducting a workover at Athena during November 2014 with the aim of increasing gross oil production from the field.

Acquisitions to date have focused on opportunities in Parkmead's preferred geographical area of Western Europe. The high level of acquisition activity demonstrates the drive and ambition of our Company, and its team, and creates a strong foundation from which Parkmead can become a key E&P player in the North Sea and beyond.

Significant progress has been made this year at the Parkmead operated Perth Dolphin Lowlander (PDL) oil hub project. A joint development study is being carried out to assess the potential joint development of the Lowlander field with the Perth oil development. This analysis has confirmed that a joint development could increase the value of the area. In addition, our experienced subsurface team has carried out detailed technical work on the Dolphin oil discovery during the year, located within Parkmead's acreage. This work confirmed that Dolphin can also be included in the joint development, providing a further increase to the gross reserves of the project. PDL is now one of the largest undeveloped oil projects in the North Sea. The excellent work carried out this year has created considerable core value for Parkmead.

Alongside acquisitions, Parkmead is equally focused on building its business through organic growth, with licence applications, seismic and drilling. In November 2013, Parkmead was awarded an additional two licences covering five exploration blocks in the Southern Gas Basin, all operated by Parkmead, as part of the second tranche of awards under the UKCS 27th Round. Work is already underway on these additional licences, with a number of new gas prospects identified. More recently, we were delighted with Parkmead's awards in the UKCS 28th Licensing Round. The Group was awarded six new licences, covering a total of nine offshore oil and gas blocks, all operated by Parkmead. These new licences contain exploration prospects as well as already proven discoveries. Importantly, a number of the licence awards provide Parkmead with new acreage within the vicinity of PDL, which could potentially be hugely valuable to Parkmead.

The fourteen new licences awarded to Parkmead across the 27th and 28th Licensing Rounds is a major achievement for our Company.

In November 2013, the Group was delighted to announce a new gas discovery at Pharos. Geological remodelling work is taking place on the discovery as the partnership discusses the timing and design of an appraisal well at Pharos. The discovery at Pharos is valuable to Parkmead because it could be jointly developed with the Platypus gas field, which is situated only 14km from the Pharos location. This would increase the value of the already economic development at Platypus. An additional gas discovery was made in September 2014 at Diever West, onshore the Netherlands. A significant 157 foot gas column was encountered, with both net pay and porosity values that exceeded pre-drill expectations. It is expected that Diever West will be tied into existing production facilities in the area as part of a fast-track onshore development.

Parkmead is looking forward to progressing the Skerryvore prospect in 2015. A site survey was undertaken to provide detailed technical analysis to the partnership before drilling takes place. Skerryvore was awarded to Parkmead as part of the UK 27th Licensing Round and is located in the Central North Sea. It consists of two stacked prospects situated across different geological horizons. The Skerryvore prospect is thought to be a southerly extension of the Talbot oil discovery to the north, and shows a similar seismic response to the neighbouring Cawdor discovery. Skerryvore has the potential to contain up to 122 million barrels of recoverable oil on a most likely, P50 basis.

Results

The Group's revenue has increased 506% in 2014 to £24.7m (2013: £4.1m). This increase in revenue was driven by new oil production from Parkmead's share of the Athena field, which is now 30%, acquired through the purchase of Lochard and the EWE Athena acquisition. The increased level of revenue generated this year demonstrates the value of the Lochard acquisition to Parkmead and the importance of building a UK production portfolio. Administrative expenses decreased to £5.7m (2013: £7.7m). The Group made a maiden operating profit for the year of £2.1m (2013: £5.1m loss). The Company moved into profit due to the significant increase in oil revenues, in addition to the gain on bargain purchase arising from the acquisition of Lochard. Profit after tax was £1.2m (2013: £5.6m loss).

Parkmead's total assets have more than doubled to £127.4m (2013: £53.4m). This was as a result of the acquisitions of Lochard and EWE's interest in Athena, in addition to the finance raised in a share placing in January 2014. Available-for-sale financial assets rose to £4.8m (2013: £4.4m). Cash and cash equivalents more than trebled to £46.3m (2013: £13.3m).

The Group's net asset value increased significantly to £99.7m (2013: £37.3m). In July 2013, Parkmead completed the acquisition of fellow independent oil and gas company, Lochard Energy. This acquisition was completed by way of a court sanctioned Scheme of Arrangement and offered Lochard shareholders 0.385 Parkmead shares for every Lochard share held. Following this deal 7,670,884 (see note 2) ordinary shares were admitted for trading.

As noted above, in January 2014, the Group raised approximately US$66.0 million (gross) through a successful, oversubscribed placing of 15,686,275 new ordinary shares, providing Parkmead with considerable financial firepower for further growth.

Upon completion in April 2014, the final consideration paid by Parkmead to EWE for its 20% stake in the Athena field was satisfied by approximately US$2.718 million in cash and the issue of 288,016 new Parkmead Shares to EWE. Following this acquisition, the Group's total ordinary shares in issue increased to 87,729,160 (2013: 61,409,267. See note 2).

As at 30 June 2014, Parkmead had drawn £2.0m of its shareholder loan facility following the debt for equity conversion. Due to Parkmead's ongoing growth and investment programme, the Board is not recommending the payment of a dividend in 2014 (2013: nil). Discussions are ongoing with potential lenders regarding the provision of debt facilities with the objective of providing the Company with increased financial flexibility and strength.

Investments

The Group's principal investment is its shareholding in Faroe Petroleum plc ("Faroe") (LSE AIM: FPM.L). As at 30 June 2014, the value of this investment was £4.8m (30 June 2013: £4.4m). The investment is held as available-for-sale.

Faroe's closing share price at 30 June 2014 was 124 pence per share. Faroe reported significant new discoveries in the period, together with a number of new licence awards across Norway. We remain of the view that Faroe has long-term upside with an ongoing drilling programme and a broad portfolio of exploration licences.

Outlook

The Directors of Parkmead are delighted with the major progress the Group has made this year in building an independent oil and gas company of increasing scale. With a balanced asset base, new licences and increasing production, we believe Parkmead has gained strong momentum over the last twelve months. In addition, we are excited by our two new gas discoveries made at Pharos and Diever West. Our team also looks forward to advancing the high-impact Skerryvore exploration target in 2015.

As we move towards 2015 and beyond, Parkmead maintains its appetite for acquisitions and will also seek to add shareholder value through a dynamic work programme. The Group has built a strong platform from which to become a key E&P player in the North Sea, and we look forward to updating shareholders as we make further progress.

Tom Cross

Executive Chairman

20 November 2014

Notes:

1.   Dr Colin Percival, Parkmead's Technical Director, who holds a First Class Honours Degree in Geology and a Ph.D in Sedimentology and has over 30 years' experience in the oil and gas industry, has reviewed and approved the technical information contained in this announcement. Parkmead's evaluation of reserves and resources was completed in accordance with the 2007 Petroleum Resources Management System prepared by the Oil and Gas Reserves Committee of the Society of Petroleum Engineers and reviewed and jointly sponsored by the World Petroleum Council, the American Association of Petroleum Geologists and the Society of Petroleum Evaluation Engineers.

2.   Ordinary share figures referring to the period before the share consolidation on 16 December 2013 have been restated to take account of the share consolidation. 

Group statement of profit or loss

for the year ended 30 June 2014

	Note	2014	2013
		£'000	£'000
Continuing operations
Revenue		24,656	4,070
Cost of sales		(21,426)	(2,455)
Gross profit		3,230	1,615
Exploration and evaluation expenses		(507)	(275)
Administrative expenses		(5,668)	(7,656)
Gain on bargain purchase		5,003	1,216
Operating profit / (loss)		2,058	(5,100)
Finance income		835	36
Finance costs		(1,856)	(175)
Loss on sale of available-for-sale financial assets		-	(43)
Profit / (loss) before taxation		1,037	(5,282)
Taxation		200	(303)
Profit / (loss) for the year attributable to the equity holders of the Parent		1,237	(5,585)
Profit / (loss) per share (pence)
Continuing operations Basic	2	1.62	(10.13)
Diluted		1.59	(10.13)

Group and company statement of profit or loss and other comprehensive income

for the year ended 30 June 2014

		Group		Company
		2014 £'000	2013 £'000	2014 £'000	2013 £'000
Profit / (loss) for the year		1,237	(5,585)	(8,257)	(7,314)
Other comprehensive income
Items that may be reclassified subsequently to profit or loss
Fair value gain / (loss) on available-for-sale financial assets		428	(1,306)	427	(1,305)
Other comprehensive income / (loss) for the year, net of tax		1,665	(1,306)	(7,830)	(1,305)
Total comprehensive income / (loss) for the year attributable to the equity holders of the Parent		1,665	(6,891)	(7,830)	(8,619)

Group and company statement of financial position

as at 30 June 2014

		Group		Company
		2014	2013	2014	2013
		£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000
Non-current assets
Property, plant and equipment: development & production		29,902	3,601	-	-
Property, plant and equipment: other		181	170	168	141
Goodwill		2,174	2,174	-	-
Other intangible assets		-	12	-	-
Exploration and evaluation assets		31,225	25,789	-	-
Investment in subsidiary and joint ventures		-	-	28,017	16,639
Available-for-sale financial assets		4,821	4,394	4,821	4,394
Deferred tax assets		1,235	-	-	-
Total non-current assets		69,538	36,140	33,006	21,174
Current assets
Trade and other receivables		11,560	3,972	26,091	14,241
Cash and cash equivalents		46,346	13,269	41,589	12,749
Total current assets		57,906	17,241	67,680	26,990
Total assets		127,444	53,381	100,686	48,164
Current liabilities
Trade and other payables		(7,973)	(8,672)	(8,016)	(7,733)
Interest-bearing loans and borrowings		(2,071)	(2,000)	-	(2,000)
Current tax liabilities		(361)	(308)	-	-
Other provisions		(107)	(141)	(107)	(73)
Total current liabilities		(10,512)	(11,121)	(8,123)	(9,806)
Non-current liabilities
Interest-bearing loans and borrowings		(4,178)	-	(2,000)	-
Other liabilities		(2,140)	(2,812)	(2,140)	(2,812)
Deferred tax liabilities		(1,593)	(1,593)	-	-
Decommissioning provisions		(9,305)	(512)	-	-
Total non-current liabilities		(17,216)	(4,917)	(4,140)	(2,812)
Total liabilities		(27,728)	(16,038)	(12,263)	(12,618)
Net assets		99,716	37,343	88,423	35,546
Equity attributable to equity holders
Called up share capital		19,365	18,970	19,365	18,970
Share premium		74,967	30,448	74,967	30,448
Merger reserve		27,187	12,631	27,187	12,631
Revaluation reserve		(1,204)	(1,632)	(1,204)	(1,631)
Retained deficit		(20,599)	(23,074)	(31,892)	(24,872)
Total Equity		99,716	37,343	88,423	35,546

Group statement of changes in equity

for the year ended 30 June 2014

	Share capital	Share premium	Merger reserve	Revaluation reserve	Retained earnings	Total
	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000
At 1 July 2012	18,724	11,620	-	(326)	(17,755)		12,263
Loss for the year	-	-	-	-	(5,585)		(5,585)
Fair value loss on available-for-sale financial assets	-	-	-	(1,306)	-		(1,306)
Total comprehensive loss for the year	-	-	-	(1,306)	(5,585)		(6,891)
Issue of new ordinary shares	160	18,828	-	-	-		18,988
Issue of new ordinary shares on acquisition of subsidiary	86	-	12,631	-	-		12,717
Share-based payments	-	-	-	-	266		266
At 30 June 2013	18,970	30,448	12,631	(1,632)	(23,074)		37,343
Profit for the year	-	-	-	-	1,237		1,237
Fair value gain on available-for-sale financial assets	-	-	-	428	-			428
Total comprehensive income for the year	-	-	-	428	1,237			1,665
Issue of new ordinary shares	276	43,883	-	-	-			44,159
Issue of new ordinary shares on acquisition of subsidiary	115	-	14,556	-	-			14,671
Issue of new ordinary shares on asset acquisition	4	636	-	-	-			640
Share-based payments	-	-	-	-	1,238			1,238
At 30 June 2014	19,365	74,967	27,187	(1,204)	(20,599)			99,716

Company statement of changes in equity

for the year ended 30 June 2014  

	Share capital	Share premium	Merger reserve	Revaluation reserve	Retained earnings	Total
	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000
At 1 July 2012	18,724	11,620	-	(326)	(17,824)		12,194
Loss for the year	-	-	-	-	(7,314)		(7,314)
Fair value loss on available-for-sale financial assets	-	-	-	(1,305)	-		(1,305)
Total comprehensive loss for the year	-	-	-	(1,305)	(7,314)		(8,619)
Issue of new ordinary shares	160	18,828	-	-	-		18,988
Issue of new ordinary shares on acquisition of subsidiary	86	-	12,631	-	-		12,717
Share-based payments	-	-	-	-	266		266
At 30 June 2013	18,970	30,448	12,631	(1,631)	(24,872)		35,546
Loss for the year	-	-	-	-	(8,257)		(8,257)
Fair value gain on available-for-sale financial assets	-	-	-	427	-			427
Total comprehensive Loss for the year	-	-	-	427	(8,257)			(7,830)
Issue of new ordinary shares	276	43,883	-	-	-			44,159
Issue of new ordinary shares on acquisition of subsidiary	115	-	14,556	-	-			14,671
Issue of new ordinary shares on asset acquisition	4	636	-	-	-			640
Share-based payments	-	-	-	-	1,237			1,237
At 30 June 2014	19,365	74,967	27,187	(1,204)	(31,892)			88,423

Group and company statement of cashflows

for the year ended 30 June 2014

		Group		Company
		2014	2013	2014	2013
	Note	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000
Cashflows from operating activities
Continuing activities	3	7,014	(4,694)	(10,678)	(13,451)
Taxation paid		(303)	(4)	-	(4)
Net cash generated by / (used in) operating activities		6,711	(4,698)	(10,678)	(13,455)
Cash flow from investing activities
Interest received		129	36	124	35
Acquisition of subsidiary, net of cash		1,052	304	-	-
Acquisition of exploration and evaluation assets		(5,677)	(5,185)	-	-
Proceeds from sale of available-for-sale financial assets		-	715	-	715
Acquisition of property, plant and equipment: development and production		(4,022)	(3,382)	-	-
Acquisition of property, plant and equipment: other		(111)	(93)	(111)	(90)
Net cash (used in) / generated by investing activities		(8,629)	(7,605)	13	660
Cash flow from financing activities
Issue of ordinary shares		39,546	15,588	39,546	15,588
Interest paid		(1,503)	(128)	(41)	(128)
Repayments of loans and borrowings		(3,048)	-	-	-
Proceeds from loans and borrowings		-	2,418	-	2,418
Net cash generated by financing activities		34,995	17,878	39,505	17,878
Net increase in cash and cash equivalents		33,077	5,575	28,840	5,083
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of year		13,269	7,694	12,749	7,666
Cash and cash equivalents at end of year		46,346	13,269	41,589	12,749

Notes to the financial information for the year ended 30 June 2014

1.   Basis of preparation of the financial information

The financial information set out in this announcement does not comprise the Group and Company's statutory accounts for the years ended 30 June 2014 or 30 June 2013.

The financial information has been extracted from the audited statutory accounts for the years ended 30 June 2014 and 30 June 2013. The auditors reported on those accounts; their reports were unqualified and did not contain a statement under either Section 498 (2) or Section 498 (3) of the Companies Act 2006 and did not include references to any matters to which the auditor drew attention by way of emphasis.

The statutory accounts for the year ended 30 June 2013 have been delivered to the Registrar of Companies. The statutory accounts for the year ended 30 June 2014 will be delivered to the Registrar of Companies following the Company's Annual General Meeting.

The accounting policies are consistent with those applied in the preparation of the interim results for the period ended 31 December 2013 and the statutory accounts for the year ended 30 June 2013, which have been prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards ("IFRS").

2.   Profit / (loss) per share

Profit per share attributable to equity holders of the Company arise from continuing operations was as follows:

	2014		2013
Profit / (loss) per 1.5p ordinary share from continuing operations (pence)
Basic	1.62		(10.13)
Diluted	1.59		(10.13)

The calculations were based on the following information:

	2014		2013
	£'000		£'000
Profit / (loss) attributable to ordinary shareholders
Continuing operations	1,237		(5,585)
Total	1,237		(5,585)
Weighted average number of shares in issue
Basic weighted average number of shares	76,215,704		55,126,664*
Dilutive potential ordinary shares
Share options	1,434,731		1,602,053*

* Prior year comparatives are restated to take account of the share consolidation.

Profit / (loss) per share is calculated by dividing the profit or loss for the year by the weighted average number of ordinary shares outstanding during the year.

Diluted loss per share

Loss per share requires presentation of diluted loss per share when a company could be called upon to issue shares that would decrease net profit or increase net loss per share. For a loss making company with outstanding share options, net loss per share would only be decreased by the exercise of share options.

3.   Notes to the statement of cashflows

Reconciliation of operating profit / (loss) to net cash flow from continuing operations

	Group			Company
		2014	2013		2014	2013
		£'000	£'000		£'000	£'000
Operating profit / (loss)		2,058	(5,100)		(8,295)	(7,166)
Depreciation		9,036	370		84	66
Amortisation and exploration write off		322	33		-	-
(Gain)/loss on disposal of fixed assets		-	133		-	83
Gain on bargain purchase		(5,003)	(1,216)		-	-
Provision for share based payments		2,489	4,529		2,488	4,538
Impairment in subsidiary		-	-		3,293	-
(Increase) in receivables		(3,315)	(265)		(11,850)	(10,804)
Increase/(decrease) in payables		1,334	(3,197)		3,441	(166)
Increase/(decrease) in other provisions		93	19		161	(2)
Net cash flow from operations		7,014	(4,694)		(10,678)	(13,451)

4.   Approval of this preliminary announcement

The preliminary report, including the financial information contained therein, is the responsibility of, and has been approved by, the Directors. The Directors are responsible for preparing the report in accordance with the AIM rules issued by the London Stock Exchange.

This announcement was approved by the Board of Directors on 20 November 2014.

5.   Posting of annual report and accounts

Copies of the Annual Report and Accounts will be posted to shareholders shortly. The Annual Report and Accounts will be made available to download, along with a copy of this announcement, on the investor relations section of the Company's website www.parkmeadgroup.com

 

END

 

 

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