The involvement of RAB Capital will require a restructure of the existing Joint Venture arrangement the two companies have with the Falklands Islands Company (FIC). RAB, FIC and Global forming a new company, Falkland Oil and Gas Limited (FOGL).
FOGL will own 77.5% of the licences with the remaining 22.5% to be held by Hardman.
Global Petroleum previously had a 50% interest and was Operator of the seven offshore petroleum licences held in the old Joint Venture. Under the restructure, Global will retain a 25.7% stake in FOGL.
Initially FOGL will be funded by its shareholders as to US$3.8 million (US$2.2 million from RAB, US$1.1 million from FIC and US$0.5 million from Global), from which FOGL will contribute its share of the FOGL-Hardman Joint Venture requirements in regard to the management, planning, acquisition, processing and interpretation of the new Falklands seismic survey.
The Joint Venture plans a 3,500km survey in the last quarter of 2004 but this may be expanded subject to tenders received and whether a non-exclusive arrangement can be agreed with the seismic contractor.
Mapping in 2003 of 4,340 kilometres of purchased seismic data has identified a number of leads in water depths of 400-1,850 metres. The leads are capable of containing 200 million to 2.5 billion barrels of oil, if oil is present in these areas.
No wells have been drilled in these areas. However, two wells in the adjacent Malvinas Basin to the west have flowed 3,000 bopd (Calamar-1) and 20 MMcfpd (Salmon-2) from the Cretaceous Springhill Formation.
FOGL plans to seek an eventual listing on the UK Alternative Investment Market (AIM).