REG - Ascent Resources PLC - Completion of Damages Claim Funding

Ascent ResourcesAnnouncement

30/05/2022 07:15

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RNS Number : 1600N  Ascent Resources PLC  30 May 2022

30 May 2022

Ascent Resources plc

("Ascent" or the "Company")

Completion of "No win No fee" Damages Claim Funding

 

Ascent Resources Plc (LON: AST), the onshore Caribbean, Hispanic American and
European focussed energy and natural resources company, is delighted to
announce its official entry into a binding damages-based agreement -
essentially a "no win no fee" funding arrangement - to appoint Enyo Law LLP
("Enyo") to pursue the Company's Energy Charter Treaty ("ECT") and UK-Slovenia
Bilateral Investment Treaty ("BIT") arbitration claim against the Republic of
Slovenia.

Enyo - the specialist arbitration and litigation legal firm who filed both of
the Notice of Disputes on behalf of the Company and represented it in last
year's pre-arbitration negotiations with the Republic of Slovenia - will be
advancing the disbursements which are expected to be incurred in the pursuit
of the claim and will only be paid out of a portion of the proceeds of the
arbitration in the event of a successful damages award or execution of a
binding settlement agreement (if achieved sooner).

The closing of this funding allows the Company to securely initiate the
arbitration proceedings against the Republic of Slovenia in relation to the
significant damages by the Company's Slovenian investment as a result of
Slovenia's breaches of the protections established by the ECT and BIT,
including, inter alia the prohibition of expropriation, the guarantee that the
investments would be accorded fair and equitable treatment
and Slovenia's guarantee that the management, maintenance, use, enjoyment or
disposal of the investments would not be impaired by arbitrary, unreasonable
or discriminatory measures.

Notwithstanding the size of the Company's damages, in its view, having
increased (for reasons including the increased gas price and the consequences
of the recent legislative changes in Slovenia) and remaining significantly in
excess of a hundred million Euros, it should be cautioned that in the event
the Company is successful in its claim any amount actually received by the
Company may be significantly lower.

Andrew Dennan, Chief Executive Officer, commented:

"Today's completion of the 'no win, no fee' damages based agreement allows the
Company to immediately advance its material damages claim against the Republic
of Slovenia in an international forum, as we seek redress for shareholders
after many years of frustration, arbitrary decision-making against the
Company's investment and delays being imposed on the project. This impact has
recently been amplified with our investment effectively being expropriated by
virtue of the new amendments to the mining law which specifically target the
destruction of our full investment value.

We are delighted to have secured this arrangement on behalf of our
shareholders and which now positions Ascent's equity holders with material
upside exposure to a claim seeking damages of  several hundred million
dollars."

Enquiries:

 Ascent Resources plc                        Via Vigo Communications

 Andrew Dennan
 WH Ireland, Nominated Adviser & Broker      0207 220 1666

 James Joyce / Sarah Mather
 Novum Securities, Joint Broker              0207 399 9400

 Jon Belliss

 

 

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