Audited Results Year ended 31 March 2021 & Update

RNS Number : 9926G

Eco (Atlantic) Oil and Gas Ltd.

30 July 2021

 

30 July 2021

ECO (ATLANTIC) OIL & GAS LTD.

("Eco," "Eco Atlantic," "Company," or together with its subsidiaries, the "Group")

Audited Results for the year ended 31 March 2021

and Operational and Business Update

Eco (Atlantic) Oil & Gas Ltd. (AIM: ECO, TSX   ‐   V: EOG) ,  the oil and gas exploration company with licences in the proven oil province of Guyana and the highly prospective basins of Namibia, is pleased to announce its results for the year ended 31 March 2021, alongside a corporate and operational update.  

The Company also notes that an updated corporate presentation is now available on its website at www.ecooilandgas.com .

Results Highlights:

Financials:

· As at 31 March 2021, the Company had working capital of US$13 million and no debt.

· I n June 2021, the Company raised an additional US$4.9m in the form of a private placement.

· As at 31 March 2021, the Company had total assets of US$17.0 million, total liabilities of $1 million and total equity of US$16.0 million.

· The Company has materially decreased its total non-exploration expenses for the year ended 31 March 2021, including general and administration expenses and compensation costs by 33%.  

Operations;

Eco Atlantic Oil & Gas

· Orinduik Block offshore Guyana - all seismic data reprocessing has now been completed and multiple light sweet oil drilling prospects are currently being reviewed by the Company and its licence partners (the "JV Partners"), with high-graded candidates being considered for the next drilling programme which Eco intends to drill in 2022. The intention is to provide further definition to the upper and lower Cretaceous interpretation and target selection for drilling. Target selection is expected in Q3 2021.

· The Company, together with its strategic partner and substantial shareholder Africa Oil Corp., continues to evaluate additional asset opportunities in both West Africa and South America with a focus on near-term high-impact exploration opportunities.

· On 30 November 2020, the Company successfully negotiated the reissuance of its four licences in Namibia's Walvis Basin for 10 years, which received final Government confirmation on 5 February 2021.

· On June 28, 2021, the Company announced that it had closed a transaction with JHI Associates Inc. ("JHI"), a private company and holder of 17.5% WI in the Canje block offshore Guyana, to acquire up to a 10% interest in JHI on a fully diluted basis (the "JHI Transaction") and to appoint Keith Hill, a non-executive Director of the Company, to the board of directors of JHI.

· The JHI Transaction increases Eco Atlantic's presence in the Guyana-Suriname basin, providing exposure to near-term drilling programme including at least three  wells, with the first two firm wells on the Canje Block drilling in 2021 and at least one on the Orinduik Block in 2022, subject to partner approval .

· On July 5, 2021, the Company announced that it received a detailed update from JHI regarding the Jabillo-1 well in the Canje Block, offshore Guyana, which reached its planned target depth and was evaluated, but did not show evidence of commercial hydrocarbons. JHI also updated that spudding of the committed Sapote 1 well on the Canje block is scheduled for mid-August 2021, with a drilling time of up to 60 days.

Solear Ltd. (formerly Eco Atlantic Renewables post period end)

· On January 26, 2021, the Company announced the formation of a new joint venture company, to source, acquire and develop an exclusive pipeline of potential high yield solar projects. At the time of launch, the new entity was to be called Eco Atlantic Renewables, however, in order to further reflect the standalone nature of the business the company has been re-named Solear Ltd. ("Solear"). 

· Eco agreed to provide a secured loan of up to US$6 million to Solear (the "Loan"). The Loan, which carries a 2% annual interest, is expected to be repayable from the proceeds of either a public or private financing, through operating cash flow, and/or a project monetization event.

· In January 2021, Solear completed its first acquisition of a fully contracted, permitted, and build ready 11MW solar project in Greece, known as the Kozani Project.

· Solear's near-term objective is to develop its pipeline of solar assets with competitive rates of return through acquisition, development and construction of solar assets, led by an experienced renewable energy team. 

Outlook:

Guyana

· Guyana continues to be one of the most prolific exploration regions in the world, with over nine billion barrels of oil discovered in the last five years. Eco and its JV Partners have already delivered two substantial oil discoveries on the Orinduik Block and the Block continues to offer significant upside potential. With the recent increase in oil prices, the JV partners will revisit the Jethro discovery commercialisation potential.

· As previously reported, Eco is fully funded for further drilling on the Orinduik Block and, with its JV Partners, is assessing all opportunities available to drill at least one exploration well into the light oil cretaceous stacked targets as soon as practical. The Company is fully aligned with its JV partners on careful target selection, based on the reprocessed 3D seismic data on the block and nearby oil discoveries, for the next drilling campaign and Eco expects to be able to update the market on further drilling plans in Q3 2021.

· The JHI Transaction provides the Company with immediate exposure to a current active drilling program in the Canje Block offshore Guyana. JHI has announced that the Block Operator ExxonMobil confirmed its plan to spud a second exploration well, Sapote 1, by mid-August 2021.

The Orinduik Block JV partners are Eco Atlantic (15% working interest ("WI")), Tullow Guyana B.V. ("Tullow") (Operator, 60% WI) and TOQAP Guyana B.V. ("TOQAP") (25% WI) a company jointly owned by TotalEnergies E&P Guyana B.V. (60%) and Qatar Petroleum (40%) .

Namibia

· The Company's successful negotiation of the reissuance of its four licences in the Walvis Basin, Offshore Namibia, lead to the expansion of its acreage position. As announced on 30 November 2020, the Company's updated licences in Namibia cover approximately 28,593 km², with over 2.362 BBOE of prospective P50 resources.

· Eco has a strategically significant acreage position in-country and is progressing its various work programmes across its four blocks offshore Namibia. The Company has witnessed considerable interest from multiple international oil companies in Namibia.

· The Company continues to monitor upcoming drilling activity in the region, which could potentially see up to four exploration wells drilled on behalf of ExxonMobil, Total, Maurel & Prom, and Shell in the next 12 months.

Corporate:

· Throughout the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Eco has prioritised the welfare of its staff and partners.

· The Company continues to keep a strict control over costs throughout the business, which continues to generate material savings as reflected in the  54% decrease in G&A for the year and has ensured that Eco remains well capitalised with a strong balance sheet.

Gil Holzman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Eco Atlantic, commented:  

"The past year has seen Eco make significant strides across a number of different aspects of its business. In terms of oil and gas exploration, we have made material progress in Namibia, through the successful negotiation and reissuance of our four licences in the Walvis Basin, and in Guyana we have completed a landmark transaction with JHI, ensuring near-term exposure to low risk, high impact drilling activity. We see the JHI Transaction as an important step for us, as we look to broaden our presence in Guyana, with the potential for increased future collaboration with the region's existing players. We also remain very upbeat about recommencing drilling activity on the Orinduik Block and we look forward to updating our investors on the timing of this during Q3 2021. We were also very encouraged to learn about the Whiptail discovery made by ExxonMobil and partners on the Stabroek block yesterday adding to the estimated discovered recoverable resource of 9 billion barrels of oil equivalent and further highlighting the basin's prospectivity. 

"We remain strongly committed to achieving exploration success at our high value assets in Namibia and Guyana, and we are very pleased to be able to demonstrate strong progress with regard to both over the past year.

"Our strategic investment into Solear Ltd. has added another attractive asset to the Company's portfolio and shows our determination to deliver value for shareholders through prudent, selective use of our cash reserves. We are excited to update the market in the coming months on Solear's progress, as we believe our investment into the business presents compelling, near-term opportunities and the potential to achieve ambitious long term strategic growth targets in an evolving energy market.

"Despite the ongoing macroeconomic backdrop, we remain very positive about what the future holds for Eco Atlantic. We have a resilient business model, a strong cash position and a number of significant near-term catalysts which we believe have the potential to create considerable value for shareholders. As ever, I look forward to keeping all of our stakeholders updated on our progress over the coming months."

The Company's audited financial results for the year ended 31 March 2021, together with Management's Discussion and Analysis and Annual Information Form as at 31 March 2021, are available to download on the Company's website at www.ecooilandgas.com and on SEDAR at www.sedar.com .

The following are the Company's Balance Sheet, Income Statements, Cash Flow Statement and selected notes from the annual Financial Statements. All amounts are in US Dollars, unless otherwise stated.

Balance Sheet

	March 31,		March 31,		April 1,
	2021		2020		2019
Assets
Current assets
Cash and cash equivalents	11,807,309		18,667,016		18,750,453
Short-term investments	1,552,640		52,737		56,098
Government receivable	22,697		19,276		24,821
Amounts owing by license partners, net	193,655		45,596		-
Accounts receivable and prepaid expenses	46,480		46,262		60,678
	13,622,781		18,830,887		18,892,050
Renewable energy licenses	1,411,186		-		-
Right of use assets	332,495		-		-
Security deposit	490,455		-		-
Petroleum and natural gas licenses	1,072,260		1,117,171		1,117,171
Total Assets	16,929,177		19,948,058		20,009,221
Liabilities
Current liabilities
Accounts payable and accrued liabilities	501,022		350,242		317,548
Advances from and amounts owing to license partners, net	97,153		-		845,524
Short-term portion of lease liability	22,987		-		-
Total Liabilities	621,162		350,242		1,163,072
Long term liabilities
Lease liability	325,917		-		-
	947,079		350,242		1,163,072
Equity
Share capital	59,099,725		59,099,725		37,509,183
Restricted Share Units reserve	267,669		267,669		83,597
Warrants	-		53,026		39,570
Stock options	2,675,724		2,542,824		2,387,837
Foreign currency translation reserve	(1,198,097)		(1,117,859)		-
Non-controlling interest	(48,674)		-		-
Accumulated deficit	(44,814,249)		(41,247,569)		(21,174,038)
Total Equity	15,982,098		19,597,816		18,846,149
Total Liabilities and Equity	16,929,177		19,948,058		20,009,221

Income Statement

		Year ended
		March 31,
		2021		2020
Revenue
Interest income		47,097		378,194
		47,097		378,194
Operating expenses :
Compensation costs		712,667		863,683
Professional fees		501,349		503,275
Operating costs		1,706,522		12,731,068
General and administrative costs		648,749		1,402,502
Share-based compensation		144,327		5,740,319
Interest expense		2,275		-
Foreign exchange gain (loss)		11,015		(789,122)
Total expenses		3,726,904		20,451,725
Net loss for the year		(3,679,807)		(20,073,531)
Foreign currency translation adjustment		(80,238)		(1,117,859)
Comprehensive loss for the year		(3,760,045)		(21,191,390)
Net loss for the year attributed to:
Equity holders of the parent		(3,631,133)		(20,073,531)
Non-controlling interests		(48,674)		-
		(3,679,807)		(20,073,531)
Basic and diluted net loss per share attributable to equity holders of the parent		(0.02)		(0.11)
Weighted average number of ordinary shares used in computing basic and diluted net loss per share		184,697,723		182,829,288

Cash Flow Statement

	Year ended
	March 31,
	2021		2020
Cash flow from operating activities
Net loss from operations	(3,679,807)		(20,073,531)
Items not affecting cash:
Share-based compensation	144,327		5,740,319
Depreciation and amortization	24,204		-
Accrued interest	2,672		-
Changes in non‑cash working capital:
Government receivable	13,518		4,326
Accounts payable and accrued liabilities	41,583		107,947
Accounts receivable and prepaid expenses	(218)		11,492
Advance from and amounts owing to license partners	(50,906)		(948,784)
	(3,504,627)		(15,158,231)
Cash flow from investing activities
Security deposit	(490,455)		-
Acquisition of Liversol and Ponsol	(1,318,931)		-
Short-term investments	(1,499,903)		-
	(3,309,289)		-
Cash flow from financing activities
Net proceeds from Private Placement	-		15,935,765
Proceeds from the exercise of stock options	-		93,559
Proceeds from the exercise of warrants	-		120,612
	-		16,149,936
Increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents	(6,813,916)		991,705
Foreign exchange differences	(45,791)		(1,075,142)
Cash and cash equivalents, beginning of year	18,667,016		18,750,453
Cash and cash equivalents, end of year	11,807,309		18,667,016

Notes to the Financial Statements

Basis of Preparation

The consolidated financial statements of the Company have been prepared on a historical cost basis with the exception of certain financial instruments that are measured at fair value. Historical cost is generally based on the fair value of the consideration given in exchange for assets.

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

Critical accounting estimates

Estimates and underlying assumptions are reviewed on an ongoing basis. Revisions to accounting estimates are recognized prospectively from the period in which the estimates are revised. The following are the key estimate and assumption uncertainties considered by management.

Change in functional currency assessment

The functional currency of the Company and its subsidiaries represent the currency of the primary economic environment in which each entity operates. Through to March 31, 2020, all entities were considered to have a functional currency of Canadian Dollars. On March 31, 2020, the Company determined the United States Dollar ("USD") to be the functional currency for Eco Guyana based on the increased expenditures incurred in USD which is expected to continue in the foreseeable future.  On April 1, 2020, the Company determined the USD to be the functional currency for Eco (Atlantic) Oil and Gas Ltd, based on the increase in USD denominated spending as of April 1, 2020. On April 1, 2020, the Company also determined the USD to be the functional currency of Eco Guyana Oil & Gas (Barbados) Ltd, since this entity is 100% owned by Eco Atlantic, and is the 100% owner of Eco Guyana, both of which have functional currencies denominated in USD. The change in estimate has been applied on a prospective basis effective April 1, 2020. On February 1, 2021, the Company determined the USD to be the functional currency of EOGN, EOGS, PAONH and PAON following the re-issuance of the Namibia Licenses (as defined below).

Effective April 1, 2020, the Company also changed its presentation currency from Canadian Dollars to USD. The change in presentation currency is to better reflect the Company's business activities and to improve investors' ability to compare the Company's results to its peers. This change has been applied retrospectively as if the Company's new presentation currency has always been the Company's presentation currency.

Events After the Reporting Period

a)  JHI Transaction

On June 28, 2021, the Company closed a transaction with JHI Associates Inc. ("JHI"), a private company incorporated in Ontario and headquartered in Toronto, Canada, for the Company to acquire up to a 10% interest on a fully diluted basis in JHI (the "Transaction") and to appoint Keith Hill, a non-executive director of the Company, to the JHI Board. The Transaction provides the Company with immediate exposure to a current active drilling program in the Canje Block offshore Guyana. The Canje Block is operated by ExxonMobil and is held by Working Interests partners Esso Exploration & Production Guyana Limited (35%), with Total E&P Guyana B.V. (35%), JHI Associates (BVI) Inc. (17.5%) and Mid-Atlantic Oil & Gas Inc. (12.5%).

Pursuant to the Transaction, the Company subscribed for 5,000,000 new common shares in JHI at a price of US$2.0 per share, representing 6.4% of JHI's enlarged share capital (the 'JHI Investment'), and has been issued a warrant to subscribe for a further 9,155,471 new common shares in JHI at an exercise price of US$2.00 per share for a period of eighteen months (the 'JHI Warrant'). If the JHI Warrant is exercised in full, the Company will hold an interest, ceteris paribus, of 10% in JHI on a fully diluted basis.

b)  Private Placement

On July 19, 2021, the Company closed a private placement financing with Africa Oil Corp. and Charlestown Energy Partners LLC issuing a total of 14,945,913 common shares and 14,945,913 share purchase warrants exercisable for 2 years at CAD$0.47.

As a result of the financing, Africa Oil Corp.'s interest in the Company is 19.99%.

**ENDS**

For more information, please visit www.ecooilandgas.com or contact the following :

Eco Atlantic Oil and Gas	c/o Celicourt [phone]
Gil Holzman, CEO Colin Kinley, COO Alice Carroll, Head of Marketing and IR	[phone] | [phone]
Strand Hanson Limited (Financial & Nominated Adviser)	[phone]
James Harris Rory Murphy James Bellman
Berenberg (Broker)	[phone]
Matthew Armitt Emily Morris Detlir Elezi
Celicourt (PR)	[phone]
Mark Antelme Jimmy Lea Ollie Mills
Hannam & Partners (Research Advisor)
Neil Passmore	[phone]

The information contained within this announcement is deemed by the Company to constitute inside information as stipulated under the Market Abuse Regulation (EU) No. 596/2014 as it forms part of United Kingdom domestic law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018.

Notes to editors:

About Eco Atlantic:

Eco Atlantic is a TSX-V and AIM quoted Oil & Gas exploration and production Company with interests in Guyana and Namibia, where significant oil discoveries have been made.

The Group aims to deliver material value for its stakeholders through oil exploration, appraisal and development activities in stable emerging markets, in partnership with major oil companies.

In Guyana, Eco Guyana holds a 15% Working Interest alongside TOQAP Guyana B.V. ("TOQAP") a company jointly owned by TotalEnergies E&P Guyana B.V. (60%) and Qatar Petroleum (40%) and Operator Tullow Oil (60%) in the 1,800 km² Orinduik Block in the shallow water of the prospective Suriname-Guyana basin.  The Orinduik Block is adjacent and updip to ExxonMobil Operated Stabroek Block, on which twenty discoveries have been announced and over 9 billion BOE recoverable resources are estimated.  On 28 June 2021, Eco acquired a 6.4% interest, with the option to increase its stake to 10%, in JHI Associates Inc. a private company which holds a 17.5% WI in the 4,800km² Canje Block. The Canje Block is operated by ExxonMobil and is held by Working Interests partners Esso Exploration & Production Guyana Limited (35%), with TotalEnergies E&P Guyana B.V. (35%), JHI Associates (BVI) Inc. (17.5%) and Mid-Atlantic Oil & Gas Inc. (12.5%).

Jethro-1 was the first major oil discovery on Orinduik Block. The Jethro-1 encountered 180.5 feet (55 meters) of net heavy oil pay in excellent Lower Tertiary sandstone reservoirs. Joe-1 was the second discovery on the Orinduik Block and comprised of high quality oil-bearing sandstone reservoir, with a high porosity of Upper Tertiary age. The Joe-1 well encountered 52 feet (16 meters) of continuous thick sandstone. 

In Namibia, the Company holds interests in four offshore petroleum licences totalling approximately 28,593km² with over 2.362bboe of prospective P50 resources in the Walvis Basin.  These four licences, Cooper, Guy, Sharon, and Tamar are being explored with industry partners with Eco Operating and maintaining an average 60% Working Interest.  Eco has been granted a drilling permit on its Cooper Block (Operator).

Eco Atlantic is a 70% shareholder in Solear Ltd., Solear is an independent private clean energy investment company focused on low cost, high yield solar development projects in southern Europe.  Solear offers investors exposure to a portfolio of pre-construction opportunities across the renewable energy value chain, from Ready-to-Build to early-stage development. 

 

END

 

 

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