The Company advises that a report today in Petroleum News.net, an industry newsletter, which contains excerpts from a recent press release by Austral Pacific Energy Limited, provides a potentially misleading view of the arrangements between the parties.
Horizon Oil has made an offer to Austral Pacific for its 28.92% interest in PRL 4, which contains the Stanley gas / condensate discovery and its 10.71% interest in PRL 5, which contains the Elevala and Ketu gas / condensate discoveries. The offer is subject to a number of conditions and standard pre-emptive rights of co-venturers in the relevant PNG petroleum retention licences. The consideration for the potential acquisition, which is not expressed in the Austral Pacific release, is considerably less than that implied in the report in the abovementioned industry newsletter, and in any case is not considered material to the Company.
Horizon Oil has been steadily increasing its interests in the petroleum retention licences over the last several years, with the objective of building a substantial interest in a large discovered resource. The Company has previously advised commercialisation opportunities for Stanley to begin as early as next year.