Hi @afawcettThanks for the earlier reply.Thinking out loud on...

Hi @afawcett

Thanks for the earlier reply.

Thinking out loud on this: I presume that the CEO is aware of the current "tension" amongst shareholders, brought about by a series of bad judgement calls coupled with sheer bad luck. But in any case, he would be acutely aware that the natives are restless. With that as context, you would think that he would be keen to keep shareholders "very" informed of progress on a range of matters, including the timeline for A3 remediation, the timeline and progress regarding A2 production (not simply "targets", but actual timelines), the status of rig contracts, the status of pad developments, and other corporate matters such as farmins, capital management and liquidity management.

Yet - and excuse me for being slightly brutal here - he has chosen to use some of his time meeting with you (and God knows who else: maybe others?) and provide "private briefings", rather than put pen to paper and provide an update via the website or via the ASX.

I am stunned by this. A corporate CEO should (must be) hyper-sensitive to shareholders (aka capital providers), particuarly when things are not going right.

My stake in Melbana is not overly large, yet as a shareholder I am left scratching my head and wondering what the hell is going on. Why does the Board think that this is acceptable, and why has there not been some action at Board level to address this?

Yes - Melbana has oil in the ground. My guess is that it has been there for a few million years already, and the way these guys are plodding along you would think that they are happy to take a few million more in getting it out. But the recent failures (across all three wells in Cuba) point to either lack of knowledge or lack of control. Either someone has no idea what they are doing, or the people that do have an idea are not onsite to supervise and advise when they are needed. A massive balls-up to say the least.

And with all that as context: next time you meet with AP, please provide him with a few pieces of advice:

1. Do not take shareholders for granted. They are the ONLY reason you are there.
2. Keep shareholders - every single on of them - informed. Not just one or two: ALL of them.
3. Sack people. If someone stuffs up, sack them. Hold people responsible for their actions and/or lack of actions.
4. Plan better, execute better. Learn from your mistakes: don't make excuses for them.

Best regards
Kit