The company said Friday it had submitted a winding-up petition to the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands, saying it was out of options as its liabilities exceed its assets. The hearing date for the winding-up petition is yet to be determined.
It had put all its hopes into its Apsara Mini Phase 1A oil development project offshore Cambodia, the first in the nation's history, which was designed to provide the necessary cash flow to fund ongoing operations.
Kris has multiple debt facilities from groups including DBS Bank, the Cambodian government and Kepinvest Singapore via security agent Madison Pacific, with debt sitting at around US$480 million.
It announced Monday that it had received receipts of notices from DBS Bank and Madison Pacific Trust Limited, noting a default event has occurred, all loans are now payable on demand and parties "are entitled to take enforcement action and intend to do so in the near future".
The Apsara field came online in February after its first well began producing in December, but rates were so low that by April it told shareholders its planned company restructuring was "no longer viable".
An independent assessment by Netherland Sewell & Associates found recovery from the company's five offshore wells was likely to be "a small fraction of pre-development estimates".
The assessment suggested performance data showed pressure depletion was the main recovery mechanism and there was no proof of water support. Formation damage in oil bearing zones could also have hit productivity.
The Cambodian government had been hoping success at the field would drive more investment into the nation's non-existent hydrocarbon sector and pull new revenue into state coffers at a time when the nation's biggest money earner, tourism site Ankgor Wat, was out of action due to COVID-19 restrictions.
Despite the liquidation announcement, KrisEnergy's investor relations vice president Tanya Pang told Cambodian media outlet VOD that operations of KrisEnergy's assets, including Apsara production, was nevertheless ongoing.
"The Winding Up Petition as announced on 4 June 2021 relates only to KrisEnergy Ltd., the parent company listed on the Singapore Exchange and not the subsidiary companies holding the Group's assets. Operations of KrisEnergy's assets are continuing," she said.
