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Company Information for Gulfsands Petroleum Plc
Company stock charts - 6 Month chart
 AIM; GPX
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Company Statement
Gulfsands Petroleum Plc is an independent oil and gas exploration and production company, incorporated in the United Kingdom, whose shares are traded on the Alternative Investment Market ("AIM") of the London Stock Exchange (symbol: GPX). The Group's major focus is on the Middle East, where it has oil exploration and development projects in the Syrian Arab Republic and upstream and midstream oil and gas business development activities in Iraq. Gulfsands also produces oil and gas from a portfolio of properties in the USA, offshore Gulf of Mexico.
Gulfsands' vision is to become one of the pre-eminent independent exploration and production companies in the Middle East and to be viewed as a preferred operator and partner.
Operations and Technology
Gulfsands portfolio includes oil and gas exploration and production projects in Block 26, Syria, oil and gas exploration and production in the Gulf of Mexico, USA and upstream and midstream oil and gas business development activities in Iraq.
SYRIA, BLOCK 26
Gulfsands owns a 50 per cent working interest in, and is the operator of, Block 26 in north-east Syria under a production sharing contract ("PSC"). The block covers approximately 8,250 km2 and encompasses existing fields which currently produce over 100,000 bopd of medium gravity 20-26° API crude oil primarily from mid-Cretaceous limestone reservoirs. These fields, which are carved out of the PSC, are operated by third parties including the Syrian Petroleum Company, but Gulfsands retains the deep exploration rights (pre-Triassic) beneath these fields.
Gulfsands has made two discoveries on Block 26: Khurbet East (June 2007) and Yousefieh (November 2008). Commercial approval to develop Khurbet East was granted in February 2008 and production commenced in July 2008 development of this discovery during the year. Having previously acquired 400 km2 of 3D seismic data, Gulfsands is in the process of acquiring an additional 850 km² of 3D seismic over Block 26 during 2009. The Yousefieh field started production in April 2010. Early in 2010 Gulfsands started a four well exploration programme in locations other than Khurbet East. Gulfsands working interest 2P reserves in Syria at December 2009 were 46 million barrels of oil.
The current exploration period for Block 26 expires in August 2010 but may be extended at the Contractor's option for a further two years. The minimum work commitments for the current exploration period have already been satisfied. The development and production period for Khurbet East expires in February 2033 (25 years after commercial approval) but may be extended at the Contractor's option for a further 10 years.
The Company has also formed a strategic partnership with Cham Holding, a prominent local industrial group, for the purpose of acquiring additional oil and gas projects in Syria and Iraq.
TUNISIA AND ITALY
In March 2010 the company announced an expansion of its geographical reach with a farm-in deal that will take the group into Tunisia and Southern Italy. Gulfsands has agreed terms with ASX listed AuDax Resources to ensure access to two exploration permits in Tunisia and one in Italy.
The Tunisian permits include the onshore Chorbane permit, which covers 2,428 sq km near the city of Stax, a proven producing area with extensive oil and gas infrastructure. One prospect on the acreage is the Sidi Daher prospect carries a recoverable un-risked prospect resource estimate of 80 million barrels of oil equivalent.
The second Tunisian permit, Kerkouane, lies offshore and is contiguous with he Italian Permit, Pantelleria. Together, the two blocks cover 4,500 sq km and contain multiple prospects and leads.
IRAQ, MAYSAN / MISAN GAS PROJECT
Gulfsands has been conducting business development activities in Iraq since 2003 and has formed a subsidiary for its operations in Iraq as well as opened an office in Baghdad.
In January 2005 the Group signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Ministry of Oil in Iraq for the Maysan Gas Project in Southern Iraq, following completion of a feasibility study in August 2004, and is currently finalising details of a definitive contract. The project involves the engineering, procurement, construction and operation of a gas gathering system, gas liquids plant and power plant that will gather, process and transmit natural gas currently being flared as a waste by-product of oil production, and will produce electricity to supply the local grid. The project has regional importance not only because of the acute need for power in the area but also because the present practice of gas flaring results in significant environmental damage to the region.
Gulfsands is actively engaged in discussions with respect to financing and potential equity partners.
The Group's primary medium term objective in Iraq is to secure oil and gas exploration and developments projects, and discussions have taken place with certain third parties with this intent. The Group has no reserves in Iraq at present.
USA, GULF OF MEXICO
In the USA Gulf of Mexico, Gulfsands owns interests in 44 blocks comprising approximately 138,000 gross acres in shallow water offshore Texas and Louisiana, which include 30 producing oil and gas fields. All of these fields are operated by third parties. The Group also has an interest in one onshore gas field in Texas.
Working interest production in the last quarter of 2008 averaged 700 boepd, compared with 1,875 boepd in H1 2008, having been adversely impacted by Hurricanes Ike and Gustav in Q3 2008.
Proven and probable reserves at 31 December 2008 were 5.1 mmboe (working interest), 3.9 mmboe (net revenue interest), of which some 46% was oil and 54% gas.
Board of Directors and Key Management
| Directors | |
| Andrew West | Non-Executive Chairman |
| Richard J. Malcolm | Chief Executive Officer |
| Mahdi Sajjad | Executive Director and President |
| Andrew Rose | Director and Chief Financial Officer |
| Kenneth Judge | Director of Corporate Development & Communications |
| David Cowan | Non-Executive Director |
| Senior Management | |
| Jason P. Oden | Vice President, Exploration Manager |
| Khalid al Ghaghorbil | General Manager Gulfsands Operations |
| Richard A Bresler | Vice President Project Engineering |
| Ian Conway | VIce President, Petroleum Engineering |
Company Address2-4 Cork Street
|
Additional Address/Key ContactRegional Offices: Gulfsands Petroleum PLC |
CapitalIssued and Outstanding 121,042,500
|
Nominated BrokersRBC Capital Markets | Nominated AdvisorsRBC Capital Markets |
Major Shareholders
| Significant Shareholders | Number of Ordinary Shares | % of Total Shares Outstanding |
| ------------------------------------------------------ | ||
| Directors | ||
| Hamilton Capital Partners Limited(1) | 3,966,750 | |
| Nordman Continental S.A. and Wickham Holdings(2) | 8,224,935 | |
| David Cowan | 441,750 | |
| Andrew Rose | 400,000 | |
| ------------------------------------------------------ | ||
| Schroder Investment Management | 22,281,494 | 18.53% |
| Abdul Rahman Kayed | 11,500,000 | 9.57% |
| John Dorrier | 7,911,850 | 6.58% |
| Al-Mashrek Global Invest Ltd. | 7,000,000 | 5.82% |
| David DeCort | 4,305,684 | 3.58% |
| George Robinson | 5,000,000 | 4.16% |
| Hugh Sloan | 5,007,240 | 4.16% |
| The Searle Family Trust | 4,134,375 | 3.44% |
Related News
05/05/10 - Gulfsands Petroleum Bid Battle Turns Out To Have Been “Much Ado About Nothing”09/04/10 - While Gulfsands Petroleum Remains The Subject Of Takeover Talk Its Annual Results Statement Maintains Its First Priority Is To Maximise The Potential In Syria
23/03/10 - Gulfsands Petroleum Extends Into Tunisia And Italy As Takeover Fever Heats Up Share Price
26/01/10 - Gulfsands Petroleum Gives Operations Updates On Its Development of The Khurbet East And The Yousefieh Fields In Syria As well Its New Exploration Project
03/12/09 - Gulfsands Petroleum and Its New Partner Sinochem announce Ambitious Exploration Plans On Block 26 in Syria For 2010
23/09/09 - Gulfsands Petroleum Making The Middle East Work As Syrian Oil Flows
Most Recent Statement
26/07/10 - Statement re Operations Update20/07/10 - Statement re Tunisia Drilling Update
12/07/10 - Tunisia Update - Drilling of Lambouka-1 Commences
07/07/10 - Statement re Additional Listing
17/06/10 - Statement re Tunisia Update
07/06/10 - Gulfsands exercises option to increase interest in blocks in Tunisia and Southern Italy