MPO molopo energy limited

Dash For Cash

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    From The Sydney Morning Herald CBD column

    Dash for cash

    One can only wonder what former corporate cop, Tony Hartnell, is doing in the company of corporate raider, Farooq Khan, and banned company director, Nick Bolton.
    But their attempt to take control of ASX-listed cash box, Molopo Energy, is being crushed by another corporate regulator, the Takeovers Panel.
    It declared unacceptable circumstances "in relation to the affairs of Molopo" this week and is currently contemplating what action it should take.
    It is quite a prize. Molopo has a market capitalisation of $34 million, cash holdings of $67 million, and minimal cash burn as it "continues to assess opportunities in the oil and gas sector."
    In other words it was a perfect fit for Khan who has built his corporate reputation on the back of cash box raids like this.  
    The fun was kicked off by the Bolton and Khan-backed Keybridge, which owns just under 20 per cent of Molopo.
    It requisitioned a shareholder meeting to sweep the board and install its own candidates. This includes Hartnell who was chairman of ASIC's predecessor, the Australian Securities Commission.
    As an aside, last December, ASIC banned Bolton from managing corporations for three years following his involvement in the failure of 13 companies that left creditors with debts totalling $25 million.
    But back to Molopo. The panel found unacceptable circumstances despite its determination that - based on the evidence provided - the key Molopo shareholders in question, Bolton and Farooq's Keybridge, and Aurora, were not associates.  
    But clearly the panel's decision recognised that it is more complicated than that. John Patton is chairman of Keybridge and managing director of Aurora which now owns just under 18 per cent of Molopo.
    Oh, and did we mention Keybridge used to own Aurora. Patton and Bolton have a significant economic interest in Aurora, and Bolton has also advised the company on its Molopo investment.
    No wonder the panel found that Patton is conflicted in his role at Keybridge "in relation to the acquisition or use of Molopo shares given his role at Aurora."
    The panel also said: "It appears to the panel that the acquisition of control over voting shares in Molopo has not taken place in an efficient, competitive and informed market. The holders of shares in Molopo do not know the identity of person who have acquired a substantial interest in Molopo."
 
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Currently unlisted public company.

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