SPINDLETOP OIL & GAS CO

2005-2008: Related-party dealings and the Barnett Shale farmout

Spindletop Oil & Gas is a Dallas company majority-controlled by Giant Energy Corp, which is wholly owned by Spindletop's president and chairman, Chris Mazzini. In January 2005 Spindletop bought a north Dallas office building for $2.038 million, funded by $238,000 of cash and a $1.8 million JPMorgan Chase loan. It took over the purchase contract from Giant and bought the building from the Colonial Casualty receiver.

In August 2006 Spindletop and Giant signed a farmout with Williams Production-Gulf Coast. A farmout lets a partner pay to drill on someone else's land in return for a share of the wells. Williams had the exclusive option to drill Barnett Shale horizontal wells on 11,500 acres of their leasehold, earning a working interest by carrying the drilling costs. In September 2008 Williams terminated the deal after drilling 12 wells, 10 on Spindletop's land and 2 on Giant's. It earned an interest only in those wells and owed no penalty, leaving Spindletop free to develop the remaining acreage itself.

2012-2021: A buyback and a strategic review

In November 2012 Spindletop bought back 700,000 shares, about 9.1% of its shares, from Nadel & Gussman Energy for $1.49 million. Nadel & Gussman agreed to a two-year standstill, promising not to buy more stock, which removed a sizeable shareholder overhang. Shares on issue fell from 7,660,803 at the end of 2011 to 6,936,269 at the end of 2012.

The record then goes quiet until July 2021, when the board announced a review of strategic alternatives, potentially a sale, merger or recapitalization, to enhance shareholder value. No timeline was set. As of that date, Giant held about 76% of the company and the outcome of the review was not yet known.