Hi Rod, given that HC is the most popular forum for people to...

Hi Rod, given that HC is the most popular forum for people to exchange views, and many people use it to help with their basic research on companies, I often wonder about the wisdom of shareholders loading up threads on their own stocks with negative views. After all, if numerous potential investors are reading these posts to get a feel about a company, it stands to reason that if all they get is negativity on a stock, they are unlikely to go any further with their research.

Sure we need a forum to discuss and share our views, but I think that some of the posts which appear on HC would be far better directed to the company by email or phone.

On the question of the legal action against Century, I have no idea where we stand at the moment, but I do know from experience that these things generally move very slowly, and it can take well over a year to even get to a hearing if the matter goes to court. I recall one case which took over five years to get to court, and then the parties settled just before the hearing started.

It is usually in the best interests of both parties to settle before the matter gets to court, to save both time and money, and I'm hoping that this will occur with CTP v Century.

It's difficult to be patient when things drag on with no news, and that applies to much-anticipated JVs and farm-ins too, but as negotiations are usually very long winded, there is often just no news to report to shareholders.

Many of us have waited several years for CTP to hit the jackpot, either by way of a major strike with their own drilling, or to get a major JV partner on board, and patience is obviously running out with some holders. Although there is no definite indication at this stage when or if anything significant is going to happen, I would be surprised (and very disappointed) if we don't see a positive announcement in the next three months. That is purely a personal view, based on the events and announcements over the past year or so.