what's next, page-25

Not sure if this will have any flow on effect for NWE, just what the tie up with nwe and wessex and these arrangements.

http://oilbarrel.com/news/wessex-exploration-gushes-higher-on-acquisition-speculation-as-gm-looms

Shares in under-pressure Wessex Exploration, which is facing down action from dissident shareholders seeking to wrest control of the Board, surged as much as 45 per cent on Friday as speculation mounted about a potential acquisition in the Far East.

The company had earlier put out a statement noting the sharp rise in the share price and confirmed it was in advanced negotiations for an acquisition that would add a prospective offshore asset with near-term production potential and experienced executives to the Board.

Press speculation has linked the acquisition to Andrew Cochran, the co-founder of Salamander Energy and known to oilbarrel.com regulars for his time as head of Dominion Petroleum, which he sold to Ophir Energy for £118 million in 2011, and as a director of Coastal Energy, sold to Spain's Cepsa for £1.2 billion late last year. On Thursday Cochran was the contact name for an entity called Hague & London Oil BV, which bought a 3.79 per cent stake in Wessex.

The Bristol-based explorer came under pressure after a run of expensive dusters in the deepwaters offshore French Guiana, where it had a small but potentially highly material 1.25 per cent stake in a frontier exploration play that in 2011 yielded a promising oil discovery. The small cap, which ended March with cash of £2.15 million, struggled to meet cash calls on the last well and saw its stake shrink to 1.103 per cent while its exploration interests in southern England have expired.

The mooted acquisition in the Far East would be an opportunity to rebuild the company and bring much needed production and revenues onto the books. Wessex warned, however, that the deal would only go through if shareholders vote down resolutions seeking to replace the existing directors at a requisitioned general meeting on May 15.Malcolm Butler, Chairman, called on shareholders to reject the resolutions. "If this acquisition is concluded, your company will have additional, highly experienced directors with successful track records and a rejuvenated asset base to allow it to grow and prosper," said Butler.

The requisitioned GM was called by Milroy Capital, which is owned by Robert “Woody” Milroy, a seasoned oil man with a 4.56 per cent stake in the AIM explorer. His call to replace the current Board is backed by former Wessex boss Frederik Dekker, who has an 11.3 per cent stake in the company. Milroy says he first met Dekker late last year because he felt i wasn't in the long term interests of the company not to engage with its largest shareholder.

“If we don't deal with this disenfranchised shareholder in some way then it will always be an issue in trying to restructure the company,” Milroy tells oilbarrel.com, stressing that Dekker will not have a management role or seat on the Board should the May 15 meeting go his way. “But I would rather than a shareholder onside than offside.”

Milroy's proposed new Board members include Robert MacAndrew, managing director of Aberdeen Drilling Management, chartered accountant Ian Burns, and Alastair Murray, COO of Stavanger Petroleum and chair of Aberdeen Drilling. Their strategy is to bring producing assets into the business so that it not only has the cash to survive but also participate in future cash calls from its retained stake in the Guyane Maritime permit offshore French Guiana.

“This is now a different company from a few years ago, when it was about speculative money and high risk wildcatting,” says Milroy. “We're now in the end game, with low cash, and it needs a different bottomline-orientated mentality.”At the time of the interview, Cochran's potential involvement was still conjecture but Milroy said he would be happy to deal with him. “If the deal is good for the company, it's not dependent on one Board or another, it's whether it's good for the shareholders,” he said.

The GM is being held in Bristol on Thursday. At the time of writing, there was much conjecture about the level of support Milroy might be able to draw upon. Watch this space.