John, Would you still think it odd if you took the view that releasing 10 day old news of a gas price increase, as a price sensitive announcement, was just a sweetener for the company providing a rat hole to weasel their way out when it becomes apparent to all that they won't be starting drilling before the end of June.
Despite the optimism shown by some on this thread I am highly skeptical that a June start date can occur.
A good drill rig is an expensive bit of gear and there would not be all that many of them in Sumatra. As such, all drill rig owners would do there best to make sure their rigs would be as fully utilised as possibe. To me this says you don't get a rig as easily as you get a hire car and that, for someone on the ground, you could determine out what is available and when, within a couple of days of ringing around.
With less than six weeks (probably less than four if mobilization times are taken into account)to go before the end of June the Co either has a drill rig lined up or it hasn't.
If they have then putting this info into yesterdays announcement would have been a real positive so why didn't they do it?
My conclusion is that they don't yet have a contract and that they only way that they will get a June start is if some other company will, or will not, release a rig dependent on the results of a well they are currently drilling or will drill in the very near future. If this is the true position I again ask myself why didn't the Company come clean and let the market know the status quo?
QPN Price at posting:
0.6¢ Sentiment: None Disclosure: Held
