Calgary, August 5, 2021: Valeura Energy Inc. (TSX:VLE, LSE:VLU) (the “Company” or “Valeura”), an upstream oil and gas company with assets in the Thrace Basin of Turkey, reports its unaudited financial and operating results for the three month period ended June 30, 2021.
Highlights
- Shallow sale – The Company closed the sale of its conventional gas business on May 26, 2021 and received net sale proceeds of US$16.85 million in cash (including closing working capital and effective date adjustments) plus deferred cash consideration valued at US$1.0 million;
- Financial position – Cash position of US$42.6 million at June 30, 2021;
- Strategy – Continuing to pursue near-term inorganic growth opportunities and seeking a suitable partner to farm-in to the Company’s 20 Tcfe unrisked mean prospective resource deep, tight gas play.
Sean Guest, President and CEO commented:
“Our second quarter results reflect the close-out operating results from our conventional gas production and financial impact of having completed the sale. In addition to the immediate growth in our cash position to US$42.6 million, with the sale completed we are now entitled to future royalty income and are able to pursue our growth-oriented strategy as a smaller and leaner organisation. This structure sets us up well to evaluate new business opportunities with minimal strain on the balance sheet.
“We continue to be active in evaluating mergers and acquisitions opportunities. Our remit includes an expanded geographic scope, with a focus on regions where the experience of our management team and board gives us a competitive advantage. In all instances, we are committed to only doing transactions which bring near term cash flow, plus the opportunity for material value generation. At the same time, our efforts to find a suitable partner for our deep tight gas appraisal play are continuing, and we believe the 20 Tcfe unrisked mean prospective resource in this play will serve to generate value for shareholders in the longer term.”
Shallow Sale Completion
Valeura’s sale of the conventional gas producing business closed on May 26, 2021 and the Company’s Q2 2021 financial results still include production revenue and costs up to that date.
The Company’s sale of its conventional gas producing business has resulted in a gain on disposal of US$6.1 million. Valeura received net sale proceeds of US$16.85 million, being the headline purchase consideration of US$15.5 million, as adjusted to reflect working capital adjustments at closing, in addition to the economic impact of production dating back to the sale’s effective date of July 1, 2020.
The Company has also recorded US$1.0 million in deferred consideration on its balance sheet, in recognition of the present value of the future royalty payments, to which it is entitled as part of the sale transaction.
With the close of the sale and disposition of subsidiary companies, Valeura is required to reclassify its non-cash accumulated foreign exchange losses which had been recorded on its balance sheet as Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income or Loss (“AOCI”) since the original asset acquisition in 2011. Due to the significant decline in the value of the Turkish Lira over the past decade, the AOCI due to currency translation, amounting to a loss of US$67.0 million, is transferred to retained earnings through the Statement of Profit and Loss. This, combined with the gain on disposal of US$6.1 million are the main drivers for the quarter’s Net loss of US$61.5 million.
Strategy Update
With the conclusion of the shallow sale Valeura has a strong financial position including US$42.6 million in cash resources at the end of Q2, no debt, and an internationally experienced management team and board, Valeura is well positioned to grow by way of mergers and acquisitions (“M&A”). In addition, as a leaner organisation carrying a lower G&A burden plus the expectation of future incoming royalty payments, the Company can pursue its evaluation work without placing significant strain on its financial resources. Valeura is progressing on several M&A targets that provide near-term cashflow, plus the opportunity for medium-term re-investment to generate material value through growth. The Company takes an uncompromising approach to these screening criteria and is squarely focussed on only executing transactions that will lead to significant value growth for shareholders.
In the longer term, Valeura intends to deliver value from its deep, unconventional tight gas play in the Thrace Basin (the “Deep Gas Play”). Its three exploration licences in the core of the Deep Gas Play are valid up to June 27, 2022, and under Turkey’s licence terms the Company has the ability to maintain these assets for up to approximately five more years through work programme commitments, which do not require material near term cost outlays, prior to converting the exploration licences to longer term production leases. With the easing of COVID-related travel restrictions, the Company is pursuing a plan to farm out a portion of its interest in the Deep Gas Play in order to jointly pursue the next phase of appraisal work.
Additional information and commentary on the three months ended March 31, 2021, is included in the Company’s management’s discussion and analysis, which is available on the Company’s website and on www.sedar.com.
For further information please contact:
Valeura Energy Inc. (General and Investor Enquiries) +1 403 237 7102
Sean Guest, President and CEO
Heather Campbell, CFO
Robin Martin, Investor Relations Manager
Contact@valeuraenergy.com, IR@valeuraenergy.com
Auctus Advisors LLP (Corporate Broker) +44 (0) 7711 627 449
Jonathan Wright
Valeura@auctusadvisors.co.uk
CAMARCO (Public Relations, Media Adviser) +44 (0) 20 3757 4980
Owen Roberts, Billy Clegg, Monique Perks, Hugo Liddy
Valeura@camarco.co.uk
Resources
Resource disclosure in this announcement is based on an independent resources evaluation as at December 31, 2018 conducted by DeGolyer and MacNaughton in its report dated March 13, 2019, which was prepared using guidelines outlined in the Canadian Oil and Gas Evaluation Handbook and in accordance with National Instrument 51-101, Standards of Disclosure for Oil ang Gas Activities, as adjusted to reflect Equinor’s withdrawal in Q1 2020. Prospective resources are those quantities of petroleum estimated, as of a given date, to be potentially recoverable from undiscovered accumulations by application of future development projects. Prospective resources have both an associated chance of discovery and a chance of development. The unrisked estimates of prospective resources referred to in this announcement have not been risked for either the chance of discovery or the chance of development. There is no certainty that any portion of the prospective resources will be discovered. If a discovery is made, there is no certainty that it will be developed or, if it is developed, there is no certainty as to the timing of such development or that it will be commercially viable to produce any portion of the prospective resources. Additional resources information is included in the Company’s annual information form for the year ended December 31, 2018.
Advisory and Caution Regarding Forward-Looking Information
Certain information included in this new release constitutes forward-looking information under applicable securities legislation. Such forward-looking information is for the purpose of explaining management’s current expectations and plans relating to the future. Readers are cautioned that reliance on such information may not be appropriate for other purposes, such as making investment decisions. Forward- looking information typically contains statements with words such as “anticipate”, “believe”, “expect”, “plan”, “intend”, “estimate”, “propose”, “project”, “target” or similar words suggesting future outcomes or statements regarding an outlook. Forward-looking information in this new release includes, but is not limited to: the Company’s entitlement to royalty payments over a five-year period; statements with respect to the Company’s inorganic growth strategy, including its ability to identify M&A targets; statements with respect to the Company’s deep tight gas play strategy, including management’s belief that the play represents a material value proposition for shareholders, and its ability to find another partner for the play. In addition, statements related to “resources” are deemed to be forward-looking information as they involve the implied assessment, based on certain estimates and assumptions, that the resources can be discovered and profitably produced in the future.
Forward-looking information is based on management’s current expectations and assumptions regarding, among other things: approvals forthcoming from the Turkish government in a manner consistent with past conduct; future drilling activity on the required/expected timelines; the prospectivity of the Company’s lands, including the deep potential; future sources of funding; future economic conditions; future currency exchange rates; the ability to meet drilling deadlines and other requirements under licences and leases; the ability to attract a new partner in the deep play; the ability to identify attractive merger and acquisition opportunities to support growth; and the Company’s continued ability to obtain and retain qualified staff and equipment in a timely and cost efficient manner. In addition, the Company’s work programmes and budgets are in part based upon expected agreement among joint venture partners and associated exploration, development and marketing plans and anticipated costs and sales prices, which are subject to change based on, among other things, the actual results of drilling and related activity, availability of drilling, high-pressure hydraulic stimulation and other specialised oilfield equipment and service providers, changes in partners’ plans and unexpected delays and changes in market conditions. Although the Company believes the expectations and assumptions reflected in such forward-looking information are reasonable, they may prove to be incorrect.
Forward-looking information involves significant known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Exploration, appraisal, and development of oil and natural gas reserves are speculative activities and involve a degree of risk. A number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated by the Company including, but not limited to: inability to secure a new partner for the deep play and execute potential M&A transactions; the risks of further disruptions from the COVID-19 pandemic; the risks of currency fluctuations; potential changes in joint venture partner strategies and participation in work programmes; uncertainty regarding the contemplated timelines and costs for the deep evaluation; potential changes in laws and regulations, the uncertainty regarding government and other approvals; counterparty risk; and the risk associated with international activity. The forward-looking information included in this new release is expressly qualified in its entirety by this cautionary statement. See the AIF for a detailed discussion of the risk factors.
The forward-looking information contained in this new release is made as of the date hereof and the Company undertakes no obligation to update publicly or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, unless required by applicable securities laws. The forward-looking information contained in this new release is expressly qualified by this cautionary statement.
Additional information relating to Valeura is also available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.
This Announcement contains inside information as defined in EU No. 596/2014, part of UK law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018, and is in accordance with the Company’s obligations under Article 17 of that Regulation.
This announcement does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy securities in any jurisdiction, including where such offer would be unlawful. This announcement is not for distribution or release, directly or indirectly, in or into the United States, Ireland, the Republic of South Africa or Japan or any other jurisdiction in which its publication or distribution would be unlawful.
Neither the Toronto Stock Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the Toronto Stock Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.
