In accordance with section 647(3)(b) of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth), we enclose a copy of the first supplementary target’s statement dated18th March 2015 (First Supplementary Target’s Statement) given by MEO Australia Limited (ABN 43 066 447 952) (MEO) in relation to the off-market takeover bid by Mosman Oil & Gas Limited (Mosman) for all of the fully paid ordinary shares in MEO.
The First Supplementary Target’s Statement has today been lodged with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission and sent to Mosman.
WA-488-P update
Section 6.3(c) of the Original Target’s Statement set out an overview of MEO’s participating interest in WA-488-P and noted that MEO had signed a binding option agreement whereby the MEO Group granted a third party an option to acquire a 30% interest in WA-488-P.
On 17th March, 2015 MEO announced that its wholly owned subsidiary has been formally notified by the international exploration company (the Farminee*) that it has received final board approval to proceed with the exercise of its option to farm into WA-488-P. (Refer ASX Release of 18th February, 2015.)
Subject to final farmin documentation and customary regulatory approvals, the exercise of the option provides the Farminee with a 30% participating interest in the permit with further options (if MEO has not secured alternative funding) to increase their participating interest by an additional 10% in return for procuring full funding of a 3D seismic survey over the Beehive prospect and an additional 40% for procuring full funding of the proposed Beehive-1 well.
If these further options are utilised by Farminee or its nominee, MEO will have a full carry through a Beehive-1 well for its residual 20% participating interest. Alternatively, in the absence of the exercise of the additional equity options, the Farminee also has the right to withdraw from the permit if MEO has not entered into other arrangements to fund its future work program prior to 4 months before the end of Permit Year 3.
Final farmin documentation is scheduled to be completed within approximately 8 weeks.
MEO’s strategy is to farmdown its interest in WA-488-P in order to participate in the drilling of this prospect at minimal cost to MEO. MEO continues to engage with a number of other parties who are also evaluating WA-488-P and additional parties can be accommodated in the Permit by the current agreement.
WA-454-P update
On 12th March, 2015 MEO Australia Limited on behalf of its wholly owned subsidiary Drysdale Offshore Exploration Pty Ltd announced that the WA-454-P Joint Venture has determined it will make two applications to the Titles Administrator to vary the Permit work program. The first application will seek to extend by 6 months Permit Year 4 (currently ending 8th June 2015) to provide further time to undertake seismic reprocessing. The second application will seek to move the current well commitment from Permit Year 5 (currently commencing 9th June 2015) to Permit Year 6 (currently commencing 9th June 2016).
The variation to the work program is being sought to allow important additional technical work to be done to optimise the location of the Breakwater-1 well. If both applications are successful, the proposed Breakwater-1 exploration well will need to be drilled prior to the revised permit expiry date of 8th December, 2017.
Furthermore, the Joint Venture has agreed that the notice period for a drill or drop decision has been extended to allow time for receipt of the Titles Administrator’s decision on both of the applications.
MEO gives no guarantee, express or implied, as to the outcome of the applications; such decisions are in the complete discretion of the Titles Administrator.