Page 12 - Euroil Week 49 2019

EurOil PROJECTS & COMPANIES EurOil
Providence CEO steps down after challenging year
IRELAND
Providence’s farm-in partner repeatedly missed deadlines to transfer over funding this summer.
PROVIDENCE Resources head Tony O’Reilly stepped down on December 6, following a diffi- cult year for Irish explorer.
The Dublin-listed company issued a state- ment saying O’Reilly had quit as the compa- ny’s CEO and as one of its board members with immediate effect. But he will do some work with the board until the end of January 2020 to ensure an orderly transfer of his responsibilities to a replacement.
That replacement has not yet been found. In the meantime, Providence’s chairman Pat Plun- kett will assume O’Reilly’s duties on a temporary basis.
“Since the foundation of the company, Tony has been the main driver behind the develop- ment of the business and has been passionate in promoting the company’s role in oil and gas exploration in the Irish offshore sector,” Plunkett commented. “Over the years, Tony led the com- pany into partnerships with some of the world’s leading energy companies, including ExxonMo- bil, Eni, Chevron, Repsol, Petronas and Total.”
O’Reilly helped found Providence in 1997 and has served as a director ever since. He was appointed as its CEO in 2005. A highlight in his tenure was the 2011/2012 drilling and testing of the Barryroe oilfield in the Celtic Sea basin, estimated to contain more than 300mn barrels of recoverable oil.
Problems for Providence began this summer, when its Chinese farm-in partner at Barryroe, APEC, repeatedly missed deadlines to transfer $9mn in funding for surveying work at the field. Cash-strapped Providence was forced to tap $3.76mn in financing from its existing share- holders in September.
O’Reilly warned at the time that his role as CEO would be on the table if the APEC funds failed to materialise by a new deadline of the end of September. No funds arrived, and Providence is now seeking a new partner to replace APEC.
Providence suffered a further setback when France’s Total in late November withdrew from a frontier licence in Ireland’s southern Porcu- pine Basin, where it had been partnered with Providence. Ireland’s oil industry is facing regu- latory uncertainty, following a recent announce- ment by the government that no new permits will be awarded for oil exploration, though per- mitting for gas will continue. Authorities have yet to clarify how this distinction will be made in practice.
“I am extremely proud of all that we have achieved over the years and the key role that our collective team efforts at Providence have played in establishing interest in Ireland’s off- shore arena,” he said. “I wish all stakeholders in Providence every success in the years ahead, par- ticularly with the Barryroe project.”™
Erdogan talks of Turkey
and Libya carrying out joint
exploration in eastern Med
Turkey and Libya can carry out joint exploration operations in the eastern Mediterranean following the signing of their deal on maritime boundaries, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan told state broadcaster TRT Haber on December 9.
The deal has been condemned by Greece as “a blatant violation of international law” particularly as it fails to take into account the presence of the Greek island of Crete.
Erdogan also said Turkey would procure a new drilling ship to continue activities in the eastern Mediterranean, adding that Ankara could expand operations to the Black Sea or international waters. Turkey has been accused
NEWS IN BRIEF
by Cyprus of drilling in waters that are part of its exclusive economic zone. It already owns two drilling ships.
The European Union’s top diplomat,
Josep Borrell, said on December 9 that some EU countries are concerned over Turkey’s controversial maritime border agreement with Libya but that the bloc will continue studying the deal before deciding whether to take action, The Associated Press reported.
“It’s clear that it is problematic. It poses major concerns to certain member states, in particular Greece and Cyprus,” Borrell told reporters after chairing a meeting of the bloc’s foreign ministers in Brussels.
“The Netherlands is always a staunch supporter of the rule of international law, and we side with Greece,” Dutch Foreign Minister Stef Blok reportedly said, adding: “International law should be upheld.”
Austrian Foreign Minister Alexander
Schallenberg was cited as saying “it’s a
little bit astounding how they split up the Mediterranean among themselves. We’ll have to see how we deal with it”.
Egypt is another country concerned at what the deal between Turkey and Libya could mean as regards oil and gas drilling rights in the eastern Mediterranean.
bne IntelliNews, December 9 2019
Alpha Adriatic, ETCA
Caspian disband Croatian
LNG joint venture
Croatia’s Alpha Adriatic and Cyprus’ ETCA Caspian have opted to disband their LNG joint venture, known as Uljanik Plovidba LNG.
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Week 49 12•December•2019