7 Feb 2014other● Neutral
Austin is one of four finalists for a Rocky Mountains exploration and production company of the year award, recognising Pathfinder; the winner is announced 13 March. No operational or financial news.
Announcements, explained
Each one in plain English, with the numbers worked through for a shareholder.
5 Feb 2014capital raising announcement● NeutralMajor
Austin raised $2.86m by placing 260m shares at 1.1c, a 15% discount, with DJ Carmichael as lead manager. Funds start the Pierre shale drilling at Pathfinder. The price is below the 1.2c August 2013 raise, so existing holders are diluted at a lower price.
What it means for a shareholder
260m new shares at A$0.011 to raise about A$2.9m. That's 13% dilution: every existing holder's slice gets 13% smaller. If you held A$1,000 of shares (90,909 at the issue price), your slice goes from 0.00516% to 0.00449% of the company. To keep it you'd need 13,409 more shares - about A$147 at the issue price.
Create a free account to see this worked out for your own holding.
31 Jan 2014drilling result▲ Good
All five new vertical Kentucky wells are drilled, logged and cased, with oil indicated in each. Stimulation design is due in about 30 days, then fracturing. This is the three-well program upsized to five, aiming for at least 40 BOPD; no production results yet.
31 Jan 2014quarterly activities report● Neutral
December quarter report: Halcón's Stifflemire #1H is drilled through the curve to about 14,000 ft, and the Kentucky fracs are being designed. Austin plans three Pierre and two Niobrara wells in 2014, with two partners committed to the first Pierre well. Mostly repeats known items.
28 Jan 2014regulatory community update▲ Good
Satellite, surface iodine and 2D seismic work at Pathfinder (11,560 acres) found fracture networks and drilling targets, including two anomalous areas of about 200 acres each. It supports the planned 2014 Pierre/Niobrara wells; these are interpretations, not a drilling result.
22 Jan 2014drilling spud▲ Good
Austin spudded Mississippi #4, its fourth Mississippi well and second on the HiLo Prospect (50% interest, 36% net revenue), targeting 6,500 ft. Prior wells flowed 82, 135 and 248 BOPD; completion is aimed for the March quarter. This is the well flagged in December as Bourke #5.
23 Dec 2013drilling spud▲ GoodMajor
Drilling has started on the Stifflemire #1H, the first of three Eagle Ford horizontal wells Halcón is drilling with Austin free-carried on the Birch project. This is the long-awaited start of the farm-out program; a fourth carried well follows with PetroMax in 2014.
10 Dec 2013drilling scheduled▲ Good
Austin says its largest drilling campaign starts this month, with Halcón's Eagle Ford drilling due within weeks. The Bourke #5 well in Mississippi (50% interest, about $350-400k) is expected to spud in two to four weeks. Kentucky output reached 28 barrels a day.
12 Nov 2013agm notice● Neutral
AGM chairman's address: Cottee says small-cap resources fell about 60% in the year and the two Texas farm-outs avoided shareholder dilution. He says Austin has an option to defer Niobrara drilling until the pipeline is complete. No new results.
31 Oct 2013quarterly activities report● Neutral
September quarter report: the Halcón and PetroMax farm-outs are complete, and the company says it is fully funded for its obligations. A Kentucky three-well program, a fourth Mississippi well and Pathfinder gas gathering in 2014 follow. Mostly repeats known items.
29 Oct 2013farm in farm out agreement● NeutralMajor
Austin cancelled the April letter of intent to farm out 30% of Pathfinder and is instead talking to several US companies about long-term development funding. It plans its first Pierre shale well there in early 2014. Mercator gas contract work continues.
9 Oct 2013asset acquisition disposition● Neutral
Tellus's side of the PEL 105 completion: it issues 19,776,020 shares to Austin for the remaining 50%, about 14.9% of Tellus. Shareholders approved the deal at its 10 July EGM. Repeats the Austin announcement.
9 Oct 2013asset acquisition disposition● NeutralMajor
The PEL 105 sale to Tellus completed, with Austin taking the $1.75m scrip option: 19,776,020 Tellus shares, about 14.9% of Tellus, escrowed 12 months. This resolves the May sale agreement, leaving Austin with no cash from it but equity exposure.
25 Sept 2013annual report● Neutral
FY2013 annual report: ten wells drilled, all flowing hydrocarbons, and about $1m of non-exploration costs cut. Chairman Cottee is forgoing fees from August and directors are forgoing bonuses. The Pathfinder pipeline is expected to operate by end of March quarter 2014. Text truncated; no financials seen.
12 Sept 2013production update▲ Good
Kentucky oil production has been lifted 25% to a stable 25 barrels a day, from 20 in 2012, after new shallow wells. Five wells cost under $100,000, and a $330,000 budget for three more is approved. Small contribution to cash flow.
21 Aug 2013resource reserve update▲ GoodMajor
Gustavson's updated report puts Birch (Texas) P50 at 11.98 million barrels of oil and 50.06 BCF gas, up 26% and 19% on the 2012 report. Kentucky P50 is 517.3 thousand barrels of oil and 1,104 MMCF gas.
14 Aug 2013farm in farm out agreement▲ GoodMajor
Austin closed the 645-acre Birch farm-out with PetroMax Operating, which fully funds the first horizontal well (US$8-9m); later wells split 70/30 in PetroMax's favour. Drilling is expected in first half 2014. With Halcón, four carried wells total US$32-36m.
5 Aug 2013capital raising announcement● NeutralMajor
Austin raised $1.7m from an institutional placement of 141.6m shares at 1.2c, a 14% discount, lower than the 1.6c April-May raise. Funds go to the Pathfinder gas pipeline, costing about $1.2m and expected to earn about $150,000 a month (company estimate).
What it means for a shareholder
142m new shares at A$0.012 to raise about A$1.7m. That's 8.1% dilution: every existing holder's slice gets 8.1% smaller. If you held A$1,000 of shares (83,333 at the issue price), your slice goes from 0.00517% to 0.00475% of the company. To keep it you'd need 7,315 more shares - about A$88 at the issue price.
Create a free account to see this worked out for your own holding.
31 July 2013quarterly activities report● Neutral
June quarter report: the Halcón Birch farm-out is signed and Pathfinder gas sales via Mercator are in the tender stage. Austin claims over $75m of implied benefit from free-carried wells. PEL 105 sale proceeds due 30 September. Rest of the text is truncated.
30 July 2013farm in farm out agreement▲ GoodMajor
Austin signed the Birch farm-out with Halcón Resources: Halcón funds three Eagle Ford horizontals (US$24-27m) and earns 70%, Austin keeps 30%. Austin gets $1.9m upfront, and 70% of Krueger and Schwartz Galbreath wells is sold. This closes the earlier unnamed-partner deal.
19 July 2013investor presentation● Neutral
RBS conference presentation in Noosa repeating known facts: 85% of Pathfinder, 100% of Birch, 403 boe/d test, and farm-outs and the Mercator gas system under way. Text is truncated; no new results seen.
4 July 2013farm in farm out agreement▲ Good
Birch three-well farm-out is progressing: titles on the 70-plus lease tracts are confirmed good. A separate farm-out of the 645-acre block with a private Texas company is near final, which would bring the carried program to four wells, about US$32m.
17 June 2013director officer appointment● Neutral
Director Nigel Hartley, appointed in 2011, resigned for personal reasons. No replacement is mentioned.
6 June 2013security holder rights change● Neutral
ASX waiver means no expiry notices will be sent for 964,612,235 listed options at 5.5c expiring 6 July 2013. With shares at 1.6c, the options are well out of the money, so lapsing unexercised looks likely (inference).
31 May 2013farm in farm out agreement▲ GoodMajor
Austin agreed terms with an unnamed major US company to fund the next three Birch Eagle Ford wells (about US$24m) and earn 70%. Austin gets a $1.95m upfront payment and keeps 100% of a 645-acre parcel. Partner to be named by 30 June.
13 May 2013capital raising announcement● NeutralMajor
The SPP and placement closed, raising about $1.5m at 1.6c in total, well below the up-to-$8m SPP target. The company lists cost cuts and deals: Pathfinder commitment well replaced by a $250,000 payment, Birch commitment wells replaced by $1.25m, and PEL 105 sold.
13 May 2013other▲ Good
Austin cites Halcon's Eagle Ford results nearby (7 wells averaging 894 boe/d) as validating its 100% Birch acreage, and says several companies have approached to buy Birch. It is pursuing farm-out talks; Gustavson P50 for Birch quoted at 16.5 million boe.
7 May 2013material agreement▲ GoodMajor
Austin signed a Heads of Agreement with Mercator Energy, which would fund and build Pathfinder gas gathering and processing, in return for a share of the NYMEX gas price. Stage one is expected in 6-9 months. Austin also bought out its third (30 June) commitment well.
3 May 2013asset acquisition disposition● NeutralMajor
Austin agreed to sell its 50% of PEL 105 (Cooper Basin) to PNC AUST for $1.25m, due 30 September 2013, or alternatively $1.75m in shares of a PNC-related listed company. Proceeds are earmarked for US gas gathering; this ends the Beach JV exposure and Pirie-1 spending.
3 May 2013asset acquisition disposition● Neutral
Buyer-side notice from Tellus Resources: PNC agreed to buy Austin's 50% of PEL 105 for $1.25m cash or $1.75m of Tellus shares (PNC's choice), by 30 September 2013. It is conditional on Tellus shareholder approval of acquiring PNC and a formal sale agreement.