Sydney meeting, page-47

I attended. If I heard him correctly, Cottee criticised particularly the institutional shareholders and oil/gas companies who should have seen the potential of this company but, probably because of the low international oil prices, refused to support it, either by buying shares or putting in a better bid than Macquarie's.
The problem CTP faces is, of course, not on the demand side but, Cottee believes, it's on the supply side. He argues that, unless, by the end of this year, we can show, through further exploration and conventional drilling ("because the green/brown alliance" has locked out shale/non-conventional gas) we can fill the NGP, the NGP may be cancelled and CTP wound up.
Cottee's body language revealed a man who is tired and wants out. He believes he did his best to get this company up and running but was defeated by the share market. I think he is genuine and is not cynically trying to manipulate us. However, I think he has failed to exhaust all alternatives to the Macquarie bid - particularly through government negotiation. His ability and track record in business is proven, but from the answers he gave last night to questions on his efforts to get federal , state and territory government support for CTP's position, I think he was found wanting. I may be wrong but I suspect that there has not been enough lobbying of government. I don't believe, for example, that Cottee will be attending today's vital meeting between the PM and the major industry oil/gas reps. Was he invited? Did CTP lobby for him to attend?
CTP is in a unique position to play a vital role in solving Australia's energy, electricity and gas for industry supply mess. As incompetent in this area as it may be, sooner or later the federal government will be forced to introduce an effective nation-wide energy supply policy; and at this crucial time to allow a company such as CTP, which can make such an important contribution to it, to languish for a lousy 40 to 80 million bucks in exploration and proving work is beyond belief. Even if federal and state governments did nothing directly to support CTP, the publicity it would get through more concentrated lobbying would get it a better share price and financial support.