$28m financing agreement for Block L exploration

OPERATORS of PetroleumBRUNEI's Block L, AED Oil Limited, announced that it had entered into a new US$20 million ($28 million) financing arrangement with La Jolla Cove Investors, Inc, which will be used primarily to finance Brunei costs including further exploration, well testing and phase two development activities in the onshore Block L.

AED's Executive Chairman, David Dix, in a letter to holders of nine per cent of the company's Unsecured Convertible Notes, said that the funding will provide the cash flow to meet the current budget and to fund testing of the Lempuyang-1 and Lukut-1 wells in January 2011 and further exploration and development opportunities on Block L.

Dix also stated that the funding should also give shareholders additional security regarding AED's ongoing funding position.

AED also announced that the company is in the position to commence well testing of the Lempuyang-1 and Lukut-1 this month and is looking toward the completion in March, of the acquisition of a 50 per cent operating interest in Block L in Brunei, one of Asia's most prospective hydrocarbon regions.

In regards to the company's development, Dix said that they "eagerly anticipate significant corporate developments over the next few months including commencement of Brunei's Lempuyang-1 testing in mid-January 2011, followed by the testing of Lukut-1".

On January 18, 2011, AED's Company Secretary Trevor Slater, announced in a statement that they have commenced testing operations and is targeting the completion of drilling at the Lempuyang-1 and Lukut-1 in October.

"All equipment, contractors and approvals have now been obtained and will be progressively mobilised as required," the statement said.

"The testing of the Lukut-1 well is scheduled to commence immediately following completion of the testing of Lempuyang-1 and will utilise the same testing equipment, rig and contractors," it added further.

In respect of the Lempuyang-1 testing, AED expects that, barring unforeseen circumstances, it will be in the position to make announcements to the market on January 28 and February 7 respectively.

On December 25, 2009, AED Oil entered into a binding sale and purchase agreement to acquire 100 per cent of Nations Petroleum Company and its prospective assets in Brunei.

Under the agreement, AED has paid US$3 million ($4.2 million) in cash and will issue 24 million fully paid ordinary shares to Nations.

Nations Petroleum previously held a 50 per cent interest in Block L, but with the agreement, Nations will end up with a 14.5 per cent holding in the company at the deal's completion.

The other 50 per cent of the Brunei Block L consortium is owned by Kulczyk Oil Ventures (40 per cent) and QAF Brunei with the remaining 10 per cent.

On March 11, 2010, the acquisition was successfully completed forming AED South East Asia Limited, a subsidiary of the Melbourne-based company.

The Brunei Times

Brunei's oil 'saving' its rainforests

Reported on Sept 11, 2009

* Current oil reserve can only support for another 30 years

* Oil provides about 90% of government revenue

* Oil generates about 96% of country's export

* Environment impact assessment is compulsory to any new project to be develop in the country in order to reserve  and protect the environment

38 oil and gas sites in South China Sea to be explored soon

Chinese geologists have found 38 oil and gas basins under the South China Sea and plan to explore them this year, state media said Monday. 

The government geologists located the 38 basins in "super-thick oil and gas-bearing strata" in the northern South China Sea, the official China Daily quoted Wang Min, a vice-minister of land and resources, as saying at a national geological conference. 

For illusion only

Wang said his ministry would conduct "comprehensive geological and environmental inspections at key offshore areas" including the northern South China Sea, the southern Yellow Sea and areas near the southern Chinese island of Hainan. 

The newspaper did not give the exact location of the oil and gas deposits in the South China Sea, much of which is subject to competing claims between China, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, Taiwan and the Philippines. 

China and Vietnam both increased patrols in disputed areas last year, amid regular spats over alleged incursions by fishing vessels from the two nations. 

Wang said geologists also found onshore oil and gas deposits near the Songliao Basin and the Yin'e Basin in northern China, and the Qiangtang Basin on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. 

They discovered natural gas hydrate for the first time in the northern South China Sea and in permafrost areas of the Qilian Mountains in north-western China, he was quoted as saying. 

"As a big developing country, we must make more efforts in exploring domestic supplies to ensure our energy security," Wang said. 

SOURCE: monstersandcritics.com

Some signs before the end of the world...

2012 - a movie about end of the world  to happen on 21.12. 2012 according to Mayan calendar. Reality: no one knows when is the end of the world but Allah...

Islamic view
SOME SIGNS BEFORE THE END OF THE WORLD

1. When the time for the end of the world is nearing, there will be bloodshed everywhere and there will be neither justice nor peace.
Everyone will aspire to grab power and mass wealth. There will be false witnesses in the courts of law. There will be acts of stealing, robbbery, cheating and lying everywhere.
People will suspect one another and will not trust one another. They will show no empathy, no love and no mercy.
They will be hardhearted. Children will have no respect for their parents and will disobey them. There will be abnormal changes in climate, seasons and time will be going faster than than usual.
Some countries will become submerged under water. Social evils such as gambling, drinking, prostitution, drugs and murder will be rampant everywhere. People will be so far removed from the belief in god that any mention of God, life after death and punishment in hell will have no meaning for them. But these very peoply, when they realize the certainty and truth of these things before or after death, they will feel great remorse and shed tears for ther negligence.
Diseases originating from animals and man will spread frome one country to another and will recur from time to time and this will entail huge loss of money and wealth.

Gay people will flourish and mariages will take place between man and man, woman and woman. Such abnormal marriages will be proteced and encouraged by constituently laws in some countries. Science and technology will become so much advanced that men will discover that there are other creatures living in other plantes and galaxies. He will discover that these creatures have bodies with structures and functions entirely different from those of the human beings.

2. The outer part of the sun consists of numerous layers (like thin filters) which have bean created by God for some specific purpose. When the end of the world comes closer, layers of the sun will begin to detoriate and degenerate one after another in different periods.

3. The end of the world will not come until people discover a mountain of gold.

4. Turkish people will fight against the Arab people. A sign of this fight is that the Turkish fighters will be wearing shoes made of leather covered with wool.

5. There will be three walls in the world. One of these is already in Jerusalem, the second will be built in Constantinople(Istanbul) and the third will be built on a place yet unknown.

6. There will be great disunity in the Islamic world. The Muslims will be divided into 73 groups.
Of these only one group will be real Muslims.

7. The Jewish people will dominate a major part of the world in terms of economy and politics.

8. The Islamic countries will come under the control of about 70 Christian and Jewish countries.

9. The condition in the Islamic countries will be so bad that idolaters will entere there into a certain part of Arabia and some ladies frome one of the tribes will begin to warship an idol by the name of Dhul Khalasa.

10. There will be a war between the Christian and the idolaters.

11. The Christians will get divided into two factions. There will start an atrocious war between them.

12. There will be several earthquakes that take place in Medina. (Arabia)

13. Imam Mahdi (Peace be upon him) will appear in Makkah (Arabia) and he will lead the islamic world and bring unity, justice and peace. His actual name will be "Muhammad' and his father's name will be "Abdullah". His face will shine like a star and and will have a beutifull black spot. His forehead will broad and his nose will be high. He will move his tongue slowly and will speak slowly. Nobody will be able to recognize him until he reaches the age of forty, except for the people close to god and the people endued with the knowledge of the Noble Quran and Hadith. He will wear two long robes, one upon the other. God will endow him with the knowledge of the unseen. He will descend from the lineage of the Last Prophet Muhammad (Peace and blessing of God upon him).

14. Imam Mahdi (Peace be upon him) will capture Jerusalem and Constantinople in Turkey

jazakalla kahair may Allah save us from hell Ameen

taken from: http://www.islamicboard.com/islamic-history-biographies/134273852-some-signs-before-end-world.html

Allah knows everything...

"Nothing mysterious about $100/barrel" - Husseini

LONDON: Oil has burst above top exporter Saudi Arabia's preferred $70-$80 range and yet OPEC is unlikely to stop the rally, helping to prepare the way for the market to bound above $100 a barrel. 

At meetings this month -- a full conference of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries in Quito and talks among Arab oil ministers in Cairo -- oil producers stood by OPEC's two-year-old set of output curbs. 

Even prices of $100 -- not far above a 26-month high of $91.88 hit this week -- need not damage the economy and would not mean OPEC should pump more if they resulted from speculation rather than any shortage, ministers and officials have said. 

"If it goes to $100 due to speculation, OPEC will not move," OPEC Secretary General Abdullah al-Badri said this month. He also said the organization did not want oil to rise that far. 

Photo courtesy of http://emerginggrowth.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/Oil-Pirces.jpeg

Analysts are split into those who see fundamental strength as the world economy recovers, driving up fuel consumption, and those who focus on differences between today's relatively well-supplied market and that of 2008, when oil sped to its all-time high of nearly $150 a barrel. 

"It remains to be seen whether prices are responding to short-term weather conditions or longer term demand and monetary issues," said Sadad al-Husseini, an oil analyst and former top official at Saudi state oil giant Saudi Aramco . 

"Given the still abundant oil inventories, it wouldn't make sense for OPEC to over-react on what may be a very transient condition." 

By the time any extra oil reached consumers, demand could be lower after the peak demand of the northern hemisphere winter. 

That would add to oversupply in a market, which for all the nominal strength is still in contango for U.S. crude -- a structure in which a relatively cheap front-month contract encourages stock-building. 

DEJA VU? More bullish analysts say OPEC caution recalls its action ahead of the record bull run of 2008, when it was slow to add oil. 

"The signal from the latest meeting in Quito was one in which the producers are still concerned about the downside," Barclays Capital said in a note. 

"In our view, that means that the upside is more likely to be controlled reactively with a delay rather than pre-emptively." 

It set its price forecast for U.S. crude to 2011 to $91 a barrel, adding that this average figure implied "a sustained period of trading above $100 at points during the year". 

Husseini and many inside OPEC have said dollar-denominated oil is cheaper than it seems because the dollar has fallen. 

"Prices have not yet risen to $100/barrel and there is nothing mysterious about $100/barrel," he said. "It equates to no more than $80/barrel in 2005 dollars, once current prices are corrected for inflation." 

In nominal terms, oil has risen 35 per cent from a low hit in May and this week's peak was around 15 per cent above the price at the end of 2009. 

The current rally set in around September after the U.S. Federal Reserve embarked on its latest quantitative easing, which has triggered a wave of buying across financial markets. 

Barclays noted total commodity assets under management had reached an all-time high after investors piled in. 

Data from U.S. regulator the Commodity Futures Trading Commission released this week showed money managers extended their net long crude oil positions to a record. 

"The Fed has in a sense been pushing the speculators. OPEC can very well argue it's not its role to add more oil," said Olivier Jakob of Petromatrix. 

Still oil's strength has been modest by comparison with commodities that face looming shortfalls, such as copper, which has touched a series of records. As oil began to rise in September, traders were contemplating record fuel inventories in the United States, the world's biggest oil user. 

Stocks have since fallen, although a deep draw in crude stockpiles could have been in part because of year-end tax positioning. The latest U.S. data will emerge late on Wednesday and on Thursday. 

In addition to stocks, OPEC has significant spare capacity, which it has pegged at around 6 million barrels per day. 

Iraq, which is exempt from the OPEC system of supply curbs as it recovers from war and sanctions, has huge scope to grow. 

Analysts have disputed it can meet a capacity target of 12 million bpd in around seven years, but even a slower increase would provide much of the extra oil needed to meet any rise in demand. 

Its new oil minister said it aimed to increase output to 3 million bpd by the end of 2011, up from around 2.6 million bpd. 

A Reuters poll saw the call on OPEC, as opposed to non-OPEC oil, increasing by 600,000 bpd in 2011. Overall oil use would rise by 1.5 million bpd. 

Absolute demand would hit a new high, but the rate of demand growth is slower than the record of 3 million bpd in 2004, according to figures from the International Energy Agency 

Source: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/commodities/opec-caution-on-output-may-help-bring-back-100-oil/articleshow/7186079.cms

Gulf of Mexico drilling to continue back

Deep water drilling may resume in the Gulf of Mexico, according to the White House’s plans, announced yesterday.

The Obama administration may give the go-ahead to for as many as 16 projects, potentially subject to additional safety rules.

The administration’s ban on drilling ended in October, but it had not approved any permits in the interim. The Wall Street Journal reported today drilling could resume in a matter of weeks.

Also today, U.K. newspaper The Daily Mail is reporting that Royal Dutch Shell (RDSa) had been pondering a takeover of BP (NYSE:BP) following the Deepwater Horizon explosion and oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. The newspaper suggested that Shell may still make a bid.

BP shares are trading up 2.8% today, while Shell shares trade up .8%.

Chevron (NYSE:CVX) shares are trading down .2%, while Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) shares trade up .3%.


Source: http://www.businessday.com.au/business/gulf-drilling-can-resume-20110104-19f23.html

AED amends 9% cinvertible note terms

AED Oil Ltd has amended the terms of a previously announced 9% convertible note issue to reflect two new put dates, July 10, 2011 and January 10, 2012, and a 10% ex-gratia reduction to the exercise price to 55c.

The changes were made ahead of significant corporate developments expected by the company over the next few months, including the start of Brunei Lempuyang 1 testing in mid January 2011, followed by the testing of Lukut 1.

Executive chairman David Dix says the introduction of new redemption dates and the ex-gratia reduction of the exercise price are in the best interests of noteholders and the company. "This step forms part of the company’s capital management program and should incentivise noteholders to continue their relationship with AED, by allowing them to participate in any upside of AED’s exciting operational developments in early 2011, while increasing funding security for AED," Mr Dix said.

The results of AED’s request to extend the expiry date for the Rombebai PSC from November 2011 until November 2014 are also expected to be known shortly. "If extended, the licence would allow AED to recommence farm-out discussions with interested parties and move to the operations phase," he said.

AED funding up $20m for Brunei development

Nodding Donkey- As seen at Seria

30 December 2010 

New US$20m Convertible Note Agreement to Fund Brunei Development 

AED Oil Limited (ASX Code: AED) is pleased to announce that it has entered into a Funding Agreement for the issue of up to US$20million of 4.75% convertible notes to US- based La Jolla Cove Investors, Inc (La Jolla Cove). 

As previously announced, AED (as operator) and its joint venture partners have committed to proceeding to phase 2 on the Block L development in Brunei. The funds raised from the issue of the convertible notes to La Jolla Cove will be used primarily to finance Brunei costs including further exploration, well testing and phase 2 development activities in Brunei Block L.  Specifically, the funding will provide the cashflow necessary to fund testing of the Lempuyang-1 and Lukut-1 wells in January 2011 and further exploration and development 

opportunities on Block L. 

Phase 2 consists of a two year exploration period which commenced on 28 August, 2010. At a minimum the Block L consortium will: 

1.acquire and process at least 500 kilometres of onshore 2D seismic data and 500 kilometres of offshore 2D seismic data; 

2.acquire and process at least 150 square kilometres of offshore 3D seismic data or the dollar equivalent amount of 2D seismic data; and 

3.drill two onshore exploration wells, each to a minimum depth of 2,000 metres. 

This funding ensures that AED’s share of the current proposed work commitments and the current testing program will be fully-funded. 

AED Chairman David Dix said this outcome demonstrates International capital market interest in Brunei. The financing incorporates prudent capital management strategies, as funds will be drawn down in tranches to support AED’s work program as it moves toward achieving milestones at its flagship project in Brunei. 

“Following a rigorous due diligence program, this funding agreement demonstrates La Jolla Cove’s strong support for AED’s corporate strategy of investment in Brunei”, Mr Dix said. 

“La Jolla Cove has demonstrated a commitment to taking a significant equity stake in AED at an important time as we move into the testing and development phase in Brunei Block L,” he said. 

La Jolla Cove is a US-based private investment company. It considers itself a leader in financing small-to-mid cap publicly listed companies and seeks to partner with businesses looking for capital and strategic advice to expand their current operations. 

La Jolla Cove's expertise lies in creating flexible financial structures which enable a company to grow. La Jolla Cove undertaken a number of investment in Australian companies. This transaction marks La Jolla Cove’s most significant Australian transaction to date. “We are pleased to partner with AED Oil at this exciting time”, stated Michael Sanberg, Assistant Portfolio Manager at La Jolla Cove.     “AED’s assets in South East Asia 

show great potential and we are thrilled to be their financial partner as they move towards development.” 

Highlights of the Funding Agreement are as follows: 

•  a cash-flow profile well-matched to AED’s expected cash outlays during well testing and development of Phase 2 work program at Brunei Block L; 

•  a low cost of funds comparative to conventional debt or hybrid securities offerings; 

•  the convertible notes are unsecured with no restrictions on the raising of further prior ranking secured debt or further equally ranking unsecured debt; and 

•  in the three months prior to the maturity date of each note, AED has the right to force conversion of any unconverted principal into equity prior to redemption of the note, if doing so is seen as being in AED’s best interests at the time. 

The issue of the notes is subject to the satisfaction of certain regulatory and other closing conditions. 

The key terms of the Convertible Notes are as follows: 

1.   Four convertible notes, each with a face value of US$5,000,000, which will be issued progressively (ie, the second note will only be issued when the first note is fully drawn and so on). 

2.   US$1,500,000 will be drawn down on the issue of each notee. Subsequently, each  note will be drawn down progressively at either US$250,000 or US$500,000 per month (at AED’s option). Subject to share price performance hurdles, AED may also call for additional one-off payments of US$750,000. 

3.   The notes bear interest at the rate of 4.75%, payable on drawn commitments. 

4.   Each note will mature 3 years after the date of its issue. AED may force conversion in the period leading up to maturity. 

5.   The Convertible Notes can be converted by La Jolla Cove in whole or in part. The conversion price will be calculated as a 20% discount to the prevailing volume weighted average price of AED shares, converted into US Dollars at a pre- determined market-based exchange rate. AED may, provided certain conditions are satisfied, elect not to accept any purported conversion where the volume weighted average price of AED shares is less than the floor price (AU$0.40). 

6.   There are no restrictions on conversion of the first Convertible Note. The remaining notes cannot convert until such time as shareholder approval is obtained for the conversion. AED will seek this approval in the new year. 

The issue of the Convertible Notes will also result in minor adjustments to the conversion prices of AED’s US$21,217,500 9% convertible notes listed on SGX-ST and for AED’s 

US$20,000,000 6% convertible notes held by the Asia Resources Fund. AED will advise the market of these adjustments in due course. AED expects that the first note will be issued in early January. 

                                                                         ‐ ENDS     ‐     

Trevor Slater  

Company Secretary  

Full formatted report can be found at http://member.afraccess.com/media?id=CMN://3A348322&filename=20101230/AED_01138487.pdf

Photo credit to http://www.weltrekordreise.ch/bilder%20bn/001-P1050836.jpg