Predator Oil & Gas Holdings Plc (PRD), the Jersey-based Oil and Gas Company with near-term hydrocarbon operations and production activities focussed on Morocco and Trinidad, is pleased to announce its audited financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2024, extracts of which are set out below.
The Company's Annual Report is available to shareholders to download from the Company's website at www.predatoroilandgas.com. In line with ESG best practice no hard copies of the Annual Report will be printed.
In addition, a copy of the 2024 Annual Report will be uploaded to the National Storage Mechanism and will be available for viewing at
https://data.fca.org.uk/#/nsm/nationalstoragemechanism.
The financial information set out below does not constitute the Company's statutory accounts for the year ending 31 December 2024.
Highlights of Financial Results for 2024
- Loss from operations of GBP 2,062,390 (GBP 4,238,363 re-stated for the period to 31 December 2023). The decrease in operating loss is primarily due to decreased drilling activity in Morocco (which was focussed on preparations for the drilling of MOU-5).
- Administrative corporate expenses of GBP 1,652,862 (GBP 1,639,501 re-stated for the period to 31 December 2023).
- Corporate administrative expenses have been prudently managed despite inflationary pressures during 2024 and despite an increase in corporate activities related to the acquisition of 51% of the issued share capital of Caribbean Rex Limited.
- Executive directors' fees have decreased to GBP 578,292 (GBP604,506 for the period to 31 December 2023). Included are technical services consulting fees charged by the executive directors for providing technical support and reports that would otherwise be out-sourced to third parties at market rates.
- Decreased cash balance at period end of 2024 GBP 3,813,371 (GBP 6,484,034 re-stated for the period to 31 December 2023).
- Additional, restricted cash of USD1,500,000 (USD 1,500,000 for the period ended 31 December 2023)
- The Company has no debt.
- Placed 45,221,203 new ordinary shares of no par value in the Company to raise GBP2,304,474 (before expenses).
- No broker warrants or share options were exercised.
- 7,500,000, 7,855,486, 2,000,000, 2,650,000 share options at an exercise price of £0.10, £0.08, £0.08125 and £0.055 lapsed.
- 3,000,000 and 3,000,000 share options have been issued exercisable at £0.125 and £0.105 respectively.
- 2,400,000, 10,000,000 and 40,0000 broker warrants have been issued exercisable at £0.05, £0.055 and £0.08 respectively.
- 1,491,889 new ordinary shares were issued at a price of £0.0925 in lieu of advisor fees totalling £138,000.
- Following the admission of the above shares the issued share capital increased to 611,874,754 by the end of the period to 31 December 2024 (565,161,662) for the period ended 31 December 2023).
Highlights of key Operational Activities in 2024
- Two intervals in the MOU-1 and MOU-3 wells were selected for a first phase of rigless testing to assess formation damage caused by heavy drilling muds used whilst drilling and for potential gas flow.
Results using the available smaller perforating guns available in Morocco confirmed lack of penetration through the formation damage.
- Two intervals in the MOU-3 well were identified for a trial Sandjet rigless testing programme using a high pressure water jet to test its potential to penetrate the formation damage.
Sandjet proved successful in perforating both intervals through the formation damage leading to an initial pressure build-up at surface.
Flow from the two separately tested reservoirs could not be achieved due to insufficient build-up of pressure and possible failure of the reservoirs to clean up.
- Desk-top studies were initiated to better understand the interaction of the reservoir mineralogy, which was different to the reservoir sands of the gas-producing Rharb Basin, with the drilling mud used in well operations.
The objective of these studies are to determine the range of options available to safely increase drawdown pressure to potentially clean up the reservoirs to promote flow to surface.
- Whilst awaiting the results of the desk top studies near-term focus moved to how to safely perforate and potentially flow gas from the shallow, moderately over-pressured "A" Sand in MOU-3, where reservoir mineralogy is not an issue, and which represents the earliest opportunity to implement a pilot CNG development in a success case of even modest gas flow rates.
Independent third-party desk top studies by the services providers are directed at finding the optimum solution for perforating effectively through two strings of casing in the shallow hole with equipment that is available within a reasonable time framework.
- Gas samples collected whilst drilling MOU-3 confirmed the presence of biogenic gas. One sample analysis in the deeper Moulouya fan interval recorded helium.
- Planning for drilling MOU-5 was well advanced by the end of 2024. Preparations were modified to include the ability to measure for potential helium concentrations whilst drilling.
- In Trinidad, the acquisition of the remaining 16.2% interest in the Cory Moruga Exploration and Production Licence was completed.
- Acquisition of a 51% controlling shareholding in Caribbean Rex Resources (Trinidad) Limited was progressed and subsequently completed in early 2025.
The Bonasse field is being acquired through this transaction together with oil storage tanks.
Production was restored and the first well workovers completed in early 2025. An oil offtake agreement has been executed, to allow for sales revenues to be generated, and a Production and Services Agreement has also been executed with a local services company to retain initially 30% of sales revenues without any exposure to field operating costs.
- Jacobin-1 in the Cory Moruga exploration and Production Licence was added to the proposed programme of Snowcap-1 and Snowcap-2ST1 well workovers.
A Memorandum of Understanding was entered into for the application of a new wax mitigation treatment technology never tested in Trinidad before.
- Options for a sales offtake agreement for potential Cory Moruga production are being assessed together with developing oil storage capacity at Cory Moruga.
- Additional potential acquisitions of producing onshore Trinidad fields are being reviewed and evaluated and some opportunities may be progressed to completion in 2025.
- In Ireland the regulatory financial and technical criteria necessary to support the award of the Corrib South successor authorisation were satisfied. It remains the Company's firm intention only to accept the successor authorisation as part of a back-to-back farm-in transaction already proposed by a Corrib gas field stakeholder.
ESG
- In 2024 the Company spent 4,127,683 Dirhams in Morocco on local services in relation to its 2024 rigless testing and MOU-5 drilling preparations.
Beneficiaries included civil engineering contractors; field support activities including provision and mobilisation of cabins; provision of Guercif warehouse staff (renting of warehouse in Guercif city); provision of water and waste disposal; fuel supplies; transport and drivers; local hotel accommodation for rig and well services crews; heavy lifting equipment; internet services and provision of office equipment; and accounting and customs administration services. This was a significant boost for the local economy around the city of Guercif.
In Trinidad the Company provided sponsorship to a local soccer team and contributed to providing Christmas hampers to the most vulnerable local communities.
Local security and labour for the Bonasse field is sourced locally.
Highlights of Directorate Changes
- Dr. Stephen Boldy was appointed non-executive Chairman following the resignation of Lonny Baumgardner.
Post Period End:
- The Company announced that civil engineering work had commenced at the MOU-5 drilling location.
- The Company announced the completion of the acquisition of 51% of Caribbean Rex Resources (Trinidad) Limited and the Bonasse field.
- The Company announced the Placing of 50 million ordinary shares with Eva Pacific Pty of no par value at a price of £0.04 per share to raise £2 million before expenses. 10 million warrants exercisable at £0.06 per share were also granted.
- The Company announced that it had entered into a transaction to acquire the Challenger Energy Group's business, producing assets and operations in Trinidad and Tobago for an initial deposit of US$250,000 satisfied by the issue of 4,411,641 Predator shares. Consent for the acquisition is required to be given by Heritage Petroleum Trinidad Limited by 30 April 2025.
- The Company awarded 45 million unallocated share options, exercisable at £0.055 per share subject to certain operational milestones being met.
- The Company announced an operational update including the execution of a Bonasse field oil offtake agreement; a Bonasse field Production and Services Agreement; plans to perforate the shallow "A" Sand in MOU-3; and plans to prepare a farmout package for 3D seismic and a well to further evaluate the structure tested by MOU-5 with focus on the helium potential identified in MOU-5 and gas potential over the structure north of the MOU-5 well location.
Paul Griffiths, Executive Chairman of Predator Oil & Gas Holdings Plc commented:
"The extensive MOU-1 and MOU-3 rigless testing programme has made progress in identifying the extent of the reservoir formation damage and the range of potential options required to achieve reservoir clean up to facilitate potential gas flow. We remain confident that the selected option and/or options can eventually be successful.
Prioritising the shallow "A" Sand for rigless testing is driven by the need to demonstrate gas flow and accelerate monetisation through a simpler CNG pilot development option.
MOU-5 demonstrated the presence of our primary target and gave us the encouragement required to develop the helium exploration play and to focus on a large core area north of MOU-5 where reservoir development is predicted.
There is no doubt that the MOU-5 structure offers considerable potential, but unlocking this potential requires a large 3D seismic programme which the Company only wishes to fund through a farmout process given our immediate portfolio priorities to monetise our gas and oil assets in Morocco and Trinidad in 2025.
The Company continues to maintain adequate cash liquidity to fund all our work programmes over the next 12 months due largely to accessing funds in the equity market when the opportunity was presented to us and a very significant and material operational saving on the MOU-5 drilling costs through effective operational oversight.
2025 is already proving to be a year of great challenges due to the turmoil created in the financial and equity markets by uncontrollable political events. This has led to reduced availability of finance; volatile commodity prices; weakened investor sentiment and caused a dash to liquidate assets for cash. Frustratingly this has led to a write-down across the oil and gas sector in general in the public market valuation of companies irrespective of the value of oil and gas resources in the ground.
We are confident that market conditions will ameliorate during 2025. However we have taken steps to ensure that we prioritise revenue generation from our producing and near-production assets; maintain the ability to sell specific assets if attractive to do so; and, where prudent, acquire additional cash-generating assets.
Improving our cash liquidity through two Placings completed at an opportune time before the market was impacted by the above circumstances ensures that we are fully-funded to complete our programme to monetise over the next 12 months from a position of strength.
We continue to manage costs by moving towards the implementation of Production and Field Services costs to remove the burden of operating costs and administrative personnel and some capital costs whilst retaining adequate cash flow from a material percentage of sales revenues."