Appointment of Ernst & Young

RNS Number : 5744X

Portland Gas plc

18 August 2009

 



For Immediate Release                                                                                             18 August 2009

PRESS RELEASE

Appointment of Ernst & Young

The Directors of Portland Gas plc (AIM: PTG) ('the Company') are pleased to announce that Ernst & Young LLP has been appointed as financial advisors to the Company in respect of the proposed divestment of shares in Portland Gas Holdings Limited ('PGL').

PGL is the developer of the Company's proposed large and flexible gas storage facility at Portland in the UK ('Portland Project'). The details of the sale process were announced to the market on 30th July 2009. Potential investors are being asked to express interest by the end of September 2009 to join a Co-operation Group which will facilitate the sharing of due-diligence activities and costs. In Q1 2010 those who have participated in the Group will then have an opportunity to make a firm commitment to invest.  

Commenting on the news, Craig Gouws, CFO of Portland Gas plc, said:

'We are pleased that Ernst & Young has joined the team to advise the Company during the ongoing process. The appointment of Ernst & Young is an important milestone in the sale process and we believe Ernst & Young has the depth of experience and skill to provide the necessary support and advice during the divestiture process'.

For further information please contact:

Portland Gas plc

Andrew Hindle, Chief Executive Officer                                                                                       020 8332 1200

Craig Gouws, Chief Financial Officer

PR - Watershed

Sara Hudston                                                                                                                           01308 420785

Investor Relations - Buchanan Communications 

Ben Willey                                                                                                                               020 7466 5000

Nominated Advisor and Broker - Seymour Pierce 

Jonathan Wright                                                                                                                       020 7107 8000

Sarah Jacobs 

Richard Redmayne

Notes to Editors:

Background on Portland Gas plc

Portland Gas' business is focused on the development of two gas storage projects in the United Kingdom at Portland, Dorset and at Islandmagee, County Antrim, Northern Ireland. The two projects could between them provide over 10% of the total UK and Ireland peak daily demand in the latter part of the next decade. The Company is also developing new projects in mainland Europe initially focussing on Germany and Spain. The Company is one of only a few in Europe focused specifically on gas storage development, a sector with significant growth potential in Europe over the coming decades. In order that the 'Portland Gas' name can remain with the Portland Project where it is very well established in Dorset, the Directors intend to seek approval at the next Annual General Meeting of the Company, scheduled for December 2009, to change the name of Portland Gas plc to 'Infrastrata plc'. The project company, Portland Gas Holdings Limited, would then be renamed to 'Portland Gas Limited'.

Portland Project

At a projected 1,000 million cubic metres ('mcm') or 35 billion cubic feet ('bcf') of working gas, the facility would be the largest onshore gas storage facility in the UK. Planning permission was granted by Dorset County Council in May 2008 and Pipeline Construction Authorisation was granted by the BERR (now known as the Department of Energy and Climate Change) in July 2008. The gas storage facility is designed to inject or withdraw gas at 20mcm per day. On peak demand days the design allows for the withdrawal rate to be boosted to 30mcm per day. The current estimate of total development cost for the project is £456m. The project will use brine compensation technology and will not require cushion gas. The project company is Portland Gas Holdings Limited ('PGL'). PGL's legal advisor is Field Fisher Waterhouse LLP and project finance advisor is BNP Paribas.

Background on Ernst & Young

Ernst & Young is a global leader in assurance, tax, transaction and advisory services. Worldwide they employ 135,000 people united by their shared values and an unwavering commitment to quality. Ernst & Young make a difference by helping their people, their clients and their wider communities achieve their potential.

Ernst & Young refers to the global organization of member firms of Ernst & Young Global Limited, each of which is a separate legal entity. Ernst & Young Global Limited, a UK company limited by guarantee, does not provide services to clients. For more information, visit www.ey.com.

Further information is available on the Company's website www.portland-gas.com. 

 

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