REG - Jersey Oil & Gas PLC - Directorate Changes and GBA Update

Jersey Oil and GasAnnouncement

22/11/2021 07:05

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RNS Number : 0479T  Jersey Oil and Gas PLC  22 November 2021

22 November 2021

 

Jersey Oil and Gas plc

("Jersey Oil & Gas", "JOG" or the "Company")

 

Directorate Changes and GBA Update

 

Jersey Oil & Gas (AIM: JOG), an independent upstream oil and gas company
‎focused on the UK Continental Shelf ("UKCS") region of the North Sea, is
pleased to announce certain changes to the composition of the Company's board
of directors (the "Board"), a senior management appointment and an update on
its Greater Buchan Area ("GBA") farm-out process.

 

Highlights

·     Les Thomas, formerly Non-Executive Director, has assumed the role
of Non-Executive Chairman

·    Graham Forbes, formerly Chief Financial Officer ("CFO") at Ithaca
Energy Inc ("Ithaca Energy") from 2010 to 2020, appointed as CFO

·    Richard Smith, previously Corporate Development Director at Ithaca
Energy from 2010 to 2020, has joined the senior management team as Chief
Commercial Officer

·   JOG remains actively engaged with multiple counterparties, including
major infrastructure funders with respect to electrification, with regards to
its GBA farm-out process - macro environment has markedly improved since
initial industry engagement

 

Board Changes

 

With immediate effect, Non-Executive Director, Les Thomas has assumed the role
of Non-Executive Chairman, replacing Marcus Stanton, who, having served as
Non-Executive Chairman for the last six years, will remain on the Board as a
Non-Executive Director and chair of the audit committee. Les has over 35
years' experience in the oil and gas industry at Marathon Oil UK Limited and
John Wood Group plc and, more recently, was Chief Executive Officer ("CEO") of
Ithaca Energy from 2013 to 2020.

 

Graham Forbes has joined the Board as CFO with immediate effect. Graham is a
Chartered Accountant with over 20 years' experience in the oil and gas
industry and was CFO of Ithaca Energy from 2010 to 2020. He qualified as a
Chartered Accountant at PriceWaterhouseCoopers before moving to ExxonMobil,
where for over five years he worked on a variety of operational and
acquisition-based projects. In 2002, Graham joined First Oil Group where, as
Finance Director and then Executive Director, he helped develop the business
into the UK's then largest privately owned E&P company. For the last 10
years he was CFO at Ithaca Energy, transforming the business through both
organic developments and multiple acquisitions. He has extensive quoted
company and corporate finance experience, having completed various debt and
equity market offerings and the US$1.2 billion sale and subsequent delisting
of Ithaca Energy.

 

In addition, Richard Smith has joined the Company's executive team as Chief
Commercial Officer. Richard has over 20 years' experience in the oil and gas
industry and wider energy sector, in various senior business development,
commercial, corporate finance and strategy positions. He was previously
Corporate Development Director at Ithaca Energy, where he spent 10 years
working alongside Les and Graham to deliver its successful growth from being a
small-cap E&P business into one of the largest independent UK North Sea
oil and gas producers. Prior to joining Ithaca Energy, Richard spent eight
years with TotalEnergies working in its UK North Sea business and at its head
office in France. He commenced his career in the energy industry as a
consultant at EA Technology, working on various financial and regulatory
assignments associated with the liberalisation of the European electricity and
gas industries.

 

Ron Lansdell and Vicary Gibbs have stepped down from the Board, having made
valuable contributions to the Company's growth during their time serving as
COO and CFO respectively. The Company is particularly appreciative of Ron and
Vicary's collective efforts in bringing our core asset, the GBA development
project, to its current level of maturity.

 

JOG has now reached a pivotal stage in the growth of its business and today's
appointments mark the next important phase in the Company's development and
delivery of its key strategic ambitions. Through successful portfolio
management, delivery of development projects, accretive corporate and asset
acquisitions, operational excellence and astute financial structuring, Les,
Graham and Richard were collectively instrumental in leading Ithaca Energy
from being a small-cap E&P business into one of the largest independent
oil and gas producers in the UK North Sea and thereby delivered significant
shareholder value. JOG's strategy of building a full cycle upstream oil and
gas business in the UK North Sea represents a parallel business model to what
this team achieved so successfully at Ithaca Energy.

 

GBA Update

 

JOG is also pleased to provide an update regarding its ongoing GBA farm-out
process as follows:

 

·   We remain actively engaged with multiple counterparties, with
discussions focusing not only on our Preferred Development Concept but also
around alternative concepts using existing third-party infrastructure

·     JOG has received expressions of interest from major infrastructure
operators with respect to funding the proposed electrification of the GBA
development and the potential regional collaboration opportunities that exist

·    JOG is advancing regional electrification collaboration efforts with
various industry parties in the Outer Moray Firth. There is the exciting
potential for an integrated solution on power supply stemming from planned
future offshore wind projects. This follows the recent announcement from Crown
Estate Scotland detailing its plans to launch a leasing process that will
enable the provision of low carbon electricity to power oil and gas
installations to decarbonise the sector

·    Potential collaboration with the owners of other oil discoveries in
the vicinity of the GBA has also been accelerated to see if a wider joint
development programme can be achieved

 

Marcus Stanton, former Non-Executive Chairman of Jersey Oil & Gas,
commented:

"I am delighted to welcome Les as the new Chair of JOG and he has already
brought a wealth of valuable expertise to the Board. I am also very pleased to
welcome Graham and Richard to the executive team of the Company. Together,
they have the hands-on experience and track record of leading large project
developments and creating significant shareholder value, and possess the
necessary expertise to successfully complete our GBA farm-out process and
accelerate JOG's growth plans.

 

"I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Ron and Vicary for their
valuable contributions to the Company's development, as we successfully
transitioned from start-up to ownership of one of the most promising new
developments in the UK North Sea. Together with the Board and the rest of the
JOG team, I wish them all the best with their future endeavours."

 

Andrew Benitz, CEO of Jersey Oil & Gas, commented:

"Les, Graham and Richard were instrumental in leading Ithaca Energy from being
a small-cap E&P business into one of the largest independent UK North Sea
oil and gas producers. I am delighted that we have been able to attract a team
with such a successful track record and I very much look forward to working
with them.

 

"Our GBA farm-out process continues and we are actively engaged with multiple
counterparties. The macro environment has markedly improved since we began
initial industry engagement and the scale and quality of the GBA asset base
makes it an exciting growth opportunity."

 

 

Enquiries:

 

 Jersey Oil and Gas plc  Andrew Benitz, CEO   C/o Camarco:

                                              Tel: 020 3757 4983
 Strand Hanson Limited   James Harris         Tel: 020 7409 3494

                         Matthew Chandler

                         James Bellman

 Arden Partners plc      Paul Shackleton      Tel: 020 7614 5900

 finnCap Ltd             Christopher Raggett  Tel: 020 7220 0500

                         Tim Redfern

 Camarco                 Billy Clegg          Tel: 020 3757 4983

                         James Crothers

 

Additional information on the Directorate Appointment

 

The following additional information is provided in accordance with AIM Rule
17 and paragraph (g) of Schedule Two of the AIM Rules for Companies:

 

Graham Andrew Forbes (aged 51)

 

 Current directorships/partnerships       Past directorships/partnerships

                                          Delek North Sea Limited
                                          DKL Energy Limited
 The Woodland Carbon Capture Company Ltd  FPF1 Limited
                                          Ithaca Alpha (N.I.) Limited
                                          Ithaca Causeway Limited
                                          Ithaca Delta Limited
                                          Ithaca Dorset Limited
                                          Ithaca Energy (North Sea) plc
                                          Ithaca Energy (UK) Limited
                                          Ithaca Energy Developments UK Limited
                                          Ithaca Energy Holdings (UK) Limited
                                          Ithaca Energy Holdings Limited
                                          Ithaca Epsilon Limited
                                          Ithaca Exploration Limited
                                          Ithaca Gamma Limited
                                          Ithaca GSA Holdings Limited
                                          Ithaca GSA Limited*
                                          Ithaca Minerals (North Sea) Limited
                                          Ithaca North Sea Limited
                                          Ithaca Oil and Gas Limited
                                          Ithaca Petroleum Limited
                                          Ithaca Pipeline Limited
                                          Ithaca SP UK Limited
                                          Ithaca SPL Limited

* - UK Companies House records indicate that Mr Forbes remains a board member
of Ithaca GSA Limited, however he resigned such directorships in January 2021
and, accordingly, steps are currently being taken to make/update the relevant
filings.

Graham Forbes was formerly a director of Richards of Aberdeen Ltd which
entered into insolvency proceedings on 18 November 2004 and was eventually
dissolved following liquidation on 10 March 2010. Graham served as a director
of this company from 1 March 2004 to 10 March 2010.

There is no further information to be disclosed in relation to Graham's
appointment pursuant to AIM Rule 17 or Schedule Two paragraph (g) of the AIM
Rules for Companies.

Notes to Editors:

Jersey Oil & Gas is a UK E&P company focused on building an upstream
oil and gas business in the North Sea. The Company holds a significant acreage
position within the Central North Sea referred to as the Greater Buchan Area
("GBA"), which includes operatorship and 100% working interests in blocks that
contain the Buchan oil field and J2 oil discovery and an 100% working interest
in the P2170 Licence Blocks 20/5b & 21/1d, that contain the Verbier oil
discovery and other exploration prospects.

JOG's total GBA acreage is estimated by management to contain 172 million
barrels of oil equivalent ("MMboe") of discovered P50 recoverable resources
net to JOG, in addition to significant exploration upside potential of
approximately 168MMboe of prospective resources in close proximity to the
Company's planned Buchan platform.  JOG has recently concluded the Concept
Select phase of an FDP for the Greater Buchan Area and plans to progress into
Front-End Engineering and Design (FEED) following greater clarity being
obtained on regional electrification options and funding.

JOG is focused on delivering shareholder value and growth through creative
deal-making, operational success and licensing rounds. Its management is
convinced that opportunity exists within the UK North Sea to deliver on this
strategy and the Company has a solid track-record of tangible success.

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.

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