Dear Shareholders,
In light of our upcoming drilling program in February and the current volatility and uncertainty in both the equity and natural resources markets, I would like to summarize 2012 and provide a strategic and operational outlook for 2013.
2012 marked a year of major accomplishments and transition for Edge Resources and I am very pleased with the achievements we have made. Amongst these, and perhaps the most significant for shareholders, was the more than doubling of our share price while the natural resources sector, in general, saw significant declines in a challenging market.
Last year we promised to deliver both near and long-term shareholder value from potential acquisitions, and we did just that; in February, 2012 we closed an oil-focused acquisition in Saskatchewan. We initiated the development of that asset, which resulted in the discovery of a significant new oil pool. Then, with the help of a 3D seismic program, we discovered two additional potential pools. We are now undertaking the exciting and enviable duty of further definition and delineation of those new pools with our Q1 2013 drilling program.
Following the February acquisition, we introduced Henderson Global Investors, a CDN$100 billion investment manager, to our shareholder register. This association has provided the Company with a strategic partner to help provide access to capital in a capital-starved junior natural resources sector. As a result, in 2012 the Company secured over $10 million in equity financing, while most juniors could not raise capital necessary to develop their assets.
Shortly after the introduction of Henderson, we added some oil-based operational strength to our team. Monty McNeil joined as our Vice President of Operations. With more than 28 years of experience with some of the industry’s biggest and best (Husky and Renaissance Energy, just to name a couple), Monty has extensive oil and gas knowledge that extends from the reservoir to the pipeline. From production optimization to drilling and completions, Monty has been a remarkable addition to our team.
2012 hosted a historical event for Edge, with a year’s worth of effort paying off with the first day of trading on the London Stock Exchange’s AIM board in July. With a European shareholder base of approximately 50% of Edge’s total, the AIM listing provided additional liquidity (nearly doubling our trading volumes) and drastically increased our access to capital in a market that was essentially closed to junior oil and gas issuers. Edge trades under the symbol EDG on the AIM exchange in the UK.
Some of the highlights of the Company’s 2012 achievements are summarized below:
2013 Outlook:
We are about to embark on a Q1 oil-based drilling program, which we expect to complete before “spring breakup” (the period of time, normally between mid-March and beginning of May when frost is coming out of the ground and heavy equipment cannot travel on county roads). This drilling program will be focused on new targets on our large undeveloped land base, including further delineation of one of our newly discovered oil pools in Saskatchewan. We expect to move a drilling rig to the first location in February.
One of the most exciting developments in 2012 was the discovery of three new Saskatchewan oil pools, through a combination of drilling and 3D seismic. We intend to kick off 2013 by further delineating those pools with a drilling program starting in February. We plan to start unlocking the potential value from these discoveries as we drill more wells and understand more about these new reservoirs.
We are planning to drill a completely new oil horizon in early 2013 with horizontal drilling technologies. With a horizontal well, it is our intent to unlock the potential of known oil reserves in a known reservoir, which is currently untapped in our immediate area. However, this reservoir extends across the bulk of our undeveloped lands and represents considerable potential value if the results are favorable.
Continuing from our organic and acquisitive growth in 2012, we have developed a strategy to build on last year’s momentum. We believe the capital scarcity that has plagued the natural resources sector for more than a year has left some assets undercapitalized and/or neglected. The recently-observed short-term bottlenecks with Canadian oil markets has widened the Canadian-to-WTI differentials and stressed some assets and companies even further than before. We believe a strong team with access to growth capital can take full advantage of these events in 2013 and secure great assets at beneficial metrics, and we fully intend to do just that.
To conclude, we believe we are exceptionally well positioned to rise above any challenges 2013 might present. More importantly, we are poised to capitalize on opportunities provided by less robust companies, teams and/or assets. We have a solid asset base to further develop and flourish with. We are proactively and constantly seeking growth opportunities through the drill bit and through acquisition. Our track record demonstrates that we are able to deliver shareholder value and we look forward to the year ahead with confidence and enthusiasm.
Thank you for your continued support.
Brad Nichol, President & Director
Edge Resources Inc.
About Edge Resources Inc.
Edge Resources is focused on developing a balanced portfolio of oil and natural gas assets from properties in Alberta and Saskatchewan, Canada. Management has consistently focused on:
The management team’s very high drilling success rate is based on the safe, efficient deployment of capital and a proven ability to efficiently execute in shallow formations, which gives Edge Resources a sustainable, low-cost, competitive advantage.
For more information, visit the company website: www.edgeres.com.
1As disclosed in the Company’s Reports on Reserves Data prepared by AJM Deloitte (the Company’s Independent Qualified Reserves Evaluator) dated effective March 31, 2011 and March 31, 2012. Consent to this disclosure has been provided by AJM Petroleum Consultants.
This release includes certain statements that may be deemed “forward-looking statements”. All statements in this release, other than statements of historical facts, that address future production, reserve potential, exploration drilling, exploitation activities and events or developments that the Company expects are forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include market prices, exploitation and exploration successes, continued availability of capital and financing, and general economic, market or business conditions. Investors are cautioned that any such statements are not guarantees of future performance and those actual results or developments may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. For more information on the Company, Investors should review the Company’s registered filings which are available at www.sedar.com.
This news release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of any offer to buy, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful. The securities offered have not been and will not be registered under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or applicable exemption from the registration requirements of the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities laws.
Barrel (“bbl”) of oil equivalent (“boe”) amounts may be misleading particularly if used in isolation. All boe conversions in this report are calculated using a conversion of six thousand cubic feet of natural gas to one equivalent barrel of oil (6 mcf=1 bbl) and is based on an energy conversion method primarily applicable at the burner tip and does not represent a value equivalency at the well head.
Trading in the securities of Edge Resources Inc. should be considered highly speculative.