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Whilst it's all quiet with Amer, I've been looking at our neighbours to CPO-5 and Petro-Dorado who sold us the block together with 50% of Tacacho block. Though CPO-5 has proved to have been a fantastic purchase, it is also worth mentioning Tacacho which is apparently also very high impact and currently being held back through social consultation issues which I presume will resolve eventually. It is more or less ignored by Amer but Petro-Dorado said back in 2014 that (note the $82.2m price tag of an adjacent block pre 2011): "On trend with the regional heavy oil trend (Venezuela to Ecuador)......Adjacent to world class plays" "Legacy well (Texaco 1949) has multiple oil shows" "Block contains an airport and navigable river" "Longer term high impact exploration" "Plans are to acquire 480 line kilometers of 2D seismic in the first quarter of 2011. In the latest bid round, the block directly north of our Tacacho block fetched the maximum bid amount for both land or offshore and also the highest ever in any block in any round of Colombia. The winning bid was US$82.2 million in work commitments and an additional royalty of 2%." It apparently has at least 2 large prospects with more seismic required, and what value is assigned to it? Near a damn it zero as is the case with most of Amerisur's portfolio. Amerisur say "Large structures have been defined on existing 2D seismic, with closures at both the base and top of the Pepino formation. The contract is currently in Phase 1, where the exploration commitment is 480km of 2D seismic. The phase is currently suspended while social consultations and security planning is performed. I think it is firmly on a back/slow burner for Amerisur but I highlighted it to illustrate what little value is assigned to Amerisur's portfolio when we consider Gran Tierra bought Llanos-34 for $30m and in a 2017 presentation suggest that it's value had grown 20 times to $600m+ based on NPV 2P. I've just looked at the wells in Llanos 34 and Parex's Cabrestero Block immediately north of Mariposa and appears to have the highest initial flow rate of any well and I believe highest quality within that fault channel, the nearest comparison is Kitaro-1 well in the Cabrestero Block which was drilled to a TD of 3,292m and encountered an oil pay in the Mirador and Une formations. If Mariposa is anything like as good as it currently appears then the SP is surely a joke, someone's having a laugh.. This is why I've been harping on about the company giving us some hint as to the potential field size fro Mariposo. If it turns out to be like Llanos 34 it will be a gem, Gran Tierra /Parex apparently have a 100% drilling success rate in Ll34 immediately to the North East in the same fault trend.

I also noticed the tight spread since the new year. I wondered if it was a result of better software that the MMs could trust to ensure they maximise profits. I have noticed it with other shares and I usually take it to mean the MMs are open for business and prepared to let the SP find it's own level. For months they have been aware of seller intent (or so it has seemed) so could guide the price to their advantage - perhaps that has changed and our major seller is no more. Whatever a tight spread is good news for generating investor interest - it's a massive deterrent to know you'll have a large loss on your investment as soon as you press the buy button.

I racing back towards it's new year (multi-year) highs.

I believe that is the pipeline route that Amerisur uses as it is the cheapest because of lower costs, but doesn't get the highest overall price. Apparently there are 2 pipelines that run to the coast SOTE government owned and I believe running at capacity and OCP run privately primarily for heavy oil and under-utilised. The linked article from just before XMas suggests that the private company running OCP intends to hand the pipeline over to the government in 2018, and apparently that is expected to lead to better segregation of heavy/light oil and a freeing up of capacity in SOTE. I suspect that could be good news for Amerisur as some pipeline bottlenecks could be removed and less heavy oil is mixed in for SOTE transfer, could lead to a better quality oil, I'm not sure how it works but that in turn could logically increase the sale price could improve. https://translate.google.co.uk/translate?hl=en&sl=es&u=https://www.lahora.com.ec/imbabura/noticia/1102123267/ocp-pasaria-a-manos-del-gobierno-&prev=search

Just about suffice, but only just IMO. Nothing spectacular or suggesting out-performance - more or less sums up 2017. However, that's history now and there is so much to look forward to. ONGC should eventually open up Mariposa so that we can see what is possible - we all know there is no sense of urgency with them. Should all become clear in Q1 though including the plan to drill the second well IMO Amerisur's drilling programme really needs to accelerate, if we are going to drill the holes then the sooner the better so that we can start getting revenue, perhaps now they are no longer obsessed with 7000bpd they can focus on drilling a few potential high impact wells where there is less certainty. The company has stated that there are new parameters for the OBA pipeline, presumably some informal agreement with Ecuador, I would really like to see a formal confirmation of an agreement then we can be certain of continued expansion. But most important of all is the surging oil price, simply based on that the SP is ridiculous and required a major rerate to simply regain previous bombed out levels sub 30p. The oil price should provide a massive uplift in netback and IMO it is inconceivable (unless there is fraud going on) that the company is not making excellent profits. The effect should dwarf (yet compound) any impact from production growth as the margins make the difference. With oil at over $68/barrel and $45 touted a sufficient to cover development - Amerisur look in a very strong position to grow All is lookin

BFool - you're setting your aspirations a littler low there mate, surely it's better to start a new year with new found optimism, how ever misguided - at least give the BoD a chance to deliver. I'm hoping for the SP to continue to rise this week and next if oil holds it's ground. Why Monday for the update unless you have some other reason to expect a fall and why a fall on what should be good news?

Dare we hope our long term super-seller has finally finished? Or just having a day off maybe.

I'm not too impressed with blog tips, they seem mostly wishful thinking, even Malcy who has a large following can't make any impact after numerous bullish comments on Amerisur. As commented by others today, I also think it's down to management to play a smart game if the SP is to rerate, Malcy, Sharehub etc can only assume management will perform as expected. I don't know the credentials of the Sharehub author so can't comment, but 65p is a rather big hurdle to reach for a tip, is there any substance behind it ? - I really hope it pans out though, I would be over the moon, if it does I shall become an instant fan of Sharehub.

I also recently read that the Colombian government are in need of foreign currency, so I think they will be very keen to see Amerisur and other oil company's expand in 2018. As with Venezuela (96% of theirs comes from oil) Colombia relies on oil, I suspect national debt will be denominated in dollars and the peso as lost depreciated about 40% in the last 5 years. All looks good for Amerisur and new prospective entrants. Apparently Colombia is seen as a good real estate investment opportunity ( I won't be partaking though lol). It is surprising that Amerisur have not managed to cut their costs a little more as they are paid in dollars and local costs guess are in peso's. I think cost control has been an area only superficially addressed by Amerisur. I suspect because they have not had to with the cash cushion they have.

Goepark have apparently taken on more acreage in Llanos - this time is Block 32 which is adjacent to their prolific Blocl 34, Both are close to CPO-5 and our discoveries, we are actually looking for oil in the same geological structures as I understand it. The difference is they are more advanced in developing their discoveries but there is no reason CPO-5 could not be every bit as good as their flagship patch. I suppose Geopark and our current partner ONGC would both like to get their hands on our sharer of the block, but I reckon seeing the development through for the next couple of years provide a major win for Amerisur, the upside is still unknown. of oil ONGC have also just announced that they have discovered what looks to be a couple of hundred million barrels of oil is India - so our partner should remain strong and able to progress their exploration commitments - lets hope CPO-5 turns out to be a couple of hundred million barrels. http://www.4-traders.com/GEOPARK-LTD-15749783/news/GeoPark-Announces-Colombia-Acreage-Acquisition-25721523/

65p - a dream come true. May as well start the new year with optimism - we can get down to realism later. lol 40p would make most of us happy IMO. Happy new year to all.

Have a great Christmas

Two more very large trades after hours yesterday - maybe are we finally clearing the backlog? Both marked as sells but could be buys or sells at 17.25p for: 2,077,634 and 845,663

Looks like someone (entity) has been trying periodically to push the SP down today, batched of automatic sells every hour or so. However, 2 late reported trades from earlier today suggest we have a large scale buyer active, two trades just reported are for 750000 each and dwarf everything else. Perhaps we are approaching a change point in sentiment. If someone is shorting they could easily be caught out, on occasion the share price has moved several pence in a day, though not recently. Bailey, I suppose it's very pretty if you can avoid the rebels, drug gangs, rioting locals and police hit squads, and nasty tropical diseases. I wonder if Thomas Cook do a package? If not, I saw article headlines about the government cracking down on drugs and sex cruises which are run along some rivers - didn't bother to read the articles as it's not the sort of holiday I normally go on, I suspect my wife would not be best pleased. lol

Bays - very confusing posts, had you had a few?, advocating selling when a few days ago you had a strong buy on it! I presume it's grumbling about inevitable selling, if it's sarcasm, it's over my head. Selling or Buying pressure is not inevitable, the prolonged selling will stop without fanfare. Who is it you are ringing ( hope the aren't charging for the tip offs?) as I've never heard of institutions sharing their trading strategy in a company with PI's. WRT to dividend, it is immaterial to a growth company like Amerisur, all monies should be ploughed into growing the company, for a secure dividend look to the FTSE.

Wuffle - I believe you're right, but the problem with it is that we give away almost all the upside to someone else. I've not held my shares through pain simply to throw in the towel now - I want full value and will wait.

Any media search shows that violence is still prevalent in Colombia, with turf wars and score settling after FARC left a power vacuum, so it's nice to see there are also positive developments - the BBC article is one of loads on the internet about the countries main crime gang declaring unilateral ceasefire. I suppose after decades of lawlessness it will take decades for a everyone to stop fighting - allegedly the police are as bad as anyone for violence and carrying out murders, always makes me smile reading how the authorities came in a settled problems in AMERs region - I read somewhere they usually settle tensions by beating the locals up. Great place Colombia, strangely overlooked by tourists and not even on my list of must do holiday destinations. lol http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-42351037

Bays, wrt your questions, On SP, clearly it is not good for some shareholders to have a low share price, but only if you are not looking to buy more. The BoD cannot control the SP, but they do effect it significantly with their PR, decisions and operational activity; it's all down to them to convince the market this is a winning investment. Sellers and shorters come and go their impact is all down to perceived weaknesses, if buyers counteract the selling it they cant supress the SP - as I've said before Rex H is entitled to sell and the persisting SP weakness is down to management not him. So my answer to your question about getting ripped off with a low SP is, no we're not, certainly failed by the BoD which allows all the other nasties to impact. The further point I was making was about management vested interest in pushing down the SP, same rule as above it only hurts them when they are in selling mode, if they are feathering their own nests a low SP is ideal or want to partake in a placing or MBO it's in their interests (cheaper warrant, cheaper placing shares and cheaper MBO) - that's why shareholders should punish them for failure IMO and why I have harped on about one of ours biting the bullet. Question is, when does management action become self serving and against the interests of other shareholders? (Malcy calls them Lifestyle Business). You could easily argue that the BoD of Amer have benefitted directly from the weakened SP as they bought shares cheap, The real dagger to the heart of shareholders comes when a company performs really badly and needs to raise capital, management and friends, ever so kindly, take part in a capital raise at a massive discount to an already depressed SP - shareholders are often near as damn it wiped out whilst management gain a large chunk of the company for peanuts. Worse still is when three is a management loan provided to save the day or do something to grow, further down the line after management fail yet again and end up owning the company for peanuts in a MBO, pre-packaged administration, a sad RNS expressing regret adds insult to injury. Hope the above explains my viewpoint and why I don't advocate glossing over management failings a many on the BB's try because they feel it boost the SP, it doesn't IMO. All the above is not directed at Amer by the way some applies other thins definitely not, it is simply generic thoughts on AIM. Apologies to those that didn't want my opinion, I try to avoid being patronising but have strong opinions.

about the ridiculous SP performance, disappointing but we just have to live with it, we may ask why but we all know what the factors are and have been for a long time..

BaysilHope - WRT to your comments., I'm not sure if you are suggesting it's a good thing or bad, I assume it is price related. Personally, I think a MBO is an extremely poor option for shareholders as it invariably means shareholders getting stitched up on price or ripped off in some other way. I also think it is an extremely unlikely scenario as the usual prerequisites are a totally demoralised shareholder base, cash problems, bleak outlook and often an engineered (IMO) crisis. Not applicable to Amer, but I urge anyone to watch out for management or large shareholders providing loans in any of their investments, it moves them ahead of other shareholders in the pecking order, able to drive a company out of business with a pre-arranged buy-out from the administrator. If we did need cash then I would be very worried about our BoD's cosy setup. I've said before that I believe a senior director should bite the bullet and make way for a more committed director WRT to a takeover, it is always possible, but I reckon we are more likely to see a merger or shares swap based takeover situation - that could be a very good scenario as it would be open and honest with the BoD on side with shareholders. I recall researching a situation with another company where the shareholders where offered 2x the value of shares in new shares, then there is always the possibility of precipitating a rival offer - a much better option to a MBO. No one should get the idea that we would all be happy just to get an offer in excess of the current SP, I for one would want fair value and now I believe that to be nearer 40p than 30p, or else I can wait. Unfortunately, what might happen doesn't help us now with the SP trashed. Blue sky thinking is fun, but more pressing is the need for management to pull their finger out operationally and organise some decent PR.