Hi All Someone earlier today mentioned The Chef had urged them...

Hi All

Someone earlier today mentioned The Chef had urged them to read between the lines of Cairn's comments on Senegal. I can't find the post, so apologies to the poster, but I did as The Chef suggested and believe he must be referring to Simon Thomson's answer to the question on whether the low price paid to COP by WPL would impose a ceiling price for the foreseeable future.

Thomson's reply is classic Yes Minister and IMO supports the theory that COP and WPL have tried to pull a swiftly. He said: "There were specific circumstances for that transaction, the way it was structured, so I can't comment any more on that."

What specific circumstances? The desire to shaft FAR and ensure WPL got the full 35% ?

That makes me highly suspicious of CNE's enthusiastic endorsement of WPL's pending entry into the JV. CNE is not pre-empting and yet clearly knows the ins and outs of the COP/WPL deal. Thomson also speaks as if WPL's entry is a fait accompli.

And why can't he comment further on a matter - the market price accorded to SNE resource - that is material to his own company's value?

This whole business has a distinct whiff of collusion about it. Yes, I'm a conspiracy theorist and could well be barking up the wrong tree - again - but it seems to me FAR's 'partners' are playing dirty pool. Phillip has talked of bastardry afoot: Is this transcript the smoking gun?

Phillip?

OOO