25 April 2013
Ascent Resources plc
("Ascent" or the "Company")
Disposal of interest in PetroHungaria Kft
Ascent Resources plc, the AIM listed European oil and gas exploration and production company, today announces that it has agreed to dispose of its 48.66% interest in PetroHungaria Kft, which held its interest in the Penészlek field, to their joint venture partners, DualEx Energy International, Swede Resources and Geomega for a cash consideration of €450,000.
The Penészlek field produces gas from two wells, PEN-101 and PEN-105A. Losses attributable to our interest in the assets of PetroHungaria in 2011 were c. €40k and net assets at 30th June 2012 of c. €1.67m.
The sale is a way to realise the full value of the remaining production in an up-front cash payment that we can redeploy to advance our core Slovenia project.
Len Reece, Chief Executive Officer, commented: "Given the relatively short life expectancy of the field and Ascent's limited cash position, it was deemed prudent to accept a proposal from our partners to dispose of our interest for this up-front payment, which gives us more certainty in terms of cashflow and cost control."
Enquiries:
Ascent Resources plc
Scott Richardson Brown, Finance Director
Tel: +44 (0)20 7251 4905
finnCap(Nominated Adviser and Broker)
Matt Goode/Charlotte Stranner |
Tel: +44 (0)20 7220 0500
FirstEnergy Capital LLP(Financial Adviser)
Hugh Sanderson / Travis Inlow
Tel: + 44 (0) 20 7448 0200
Press Enquiries - Cardew Group
Anthony Cardew / Alexandra Stoneham |
Tel: +44 (0)20 7930 0777
About Ascent Resources
Ascent Resources plc has a diversified portfolio of hydrocarbon exploration and development interests across five countries in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, Hungary, Slovenia and Netherlands. Its portfolio contains a solid base of field redevelopment projects with selected exposure to exploration upside. The portfolio is focussed on gas and, with the exception of the shallow water Netherlands project, all of its projects are located onshore where operating and development costs are substantially lower than they would be offshore.
