Member Info for Madpunter

Posted by regdik on the 19th January :-

Well some interesting take on todays event.
First I must say I have no idea what this means but looking back over it may give some indication.
GG seems not to be playing as expected by those whishing to open up the country to the West. Russia would not like what is happening in their back yard so interference is to expected. We are potentially talking tremendous regional energy based influence and not to mention big money. Add to this a ready made path to market (BP pipeline) will look like an attractive prospect to those who like to poke their finger in the pie.
So Russia and those that support them in Georgia would look for any reason to land grab but will try and do it legally and not just throw a US Gov. backed company off their block (although I believe they could). Arbitration is supposed to be independent but with so much at stake.....
So we now see why the majors have held back (block ownership and Russia in the background) and with so much at stake could explain the tight lipped approach.
The tone of the letter from the senator to me can be read one way is that diplomacy is not going well so the Trump factor of throwing the kitchen sink at the potential problem. Pool old FRR are the middle of this but I’m unsure if the rubble or the dollar will win out – the people are looking west the politician are looking at Putin and the potential riches that the friends of Russia seem to acquire.
I agree that it would be a stretch to link Hope to the Russians (but they have history) as the Arbitrations is key to the final ownership of the block. A fact that would work against Hopes aspirations.
What will be the outcome
GG wants 99% and it looks like FRR proposed 50% if previous finding are an indication. Or around these figures (5% in the liquidated company will revert to GG).
However, it is a positive that the US are openly backing FRR plus Exxon have finished their review of Georgia and two offshore blocks are up for grabs. I will also add into the mix is that Russia do not have the expertise of BP or Exxon to develop such a complex fields (B12 and offshore) they will be reliant on Western knowhow and technology. Those at the top know this.
I have said this was always political and the outcome will decide FRR future and not Texas/Cali.
The 3.5Bil CC treat could be the deciding factor to how this plays out and I hold no hope to regaining any sunk costs as this is baked into the core of the LtO franchisee – expenditure is at the prospectors risk. FRR are alive but god knows how so I remain on the positive side.

Posted by Madpunter on the 19th January :-

IMHO it is because the court cases in NY and Texas are very close to a favourable conclusion and the arbitration just needs the change from a 5 year to a 50 year licence extension. This was reliant on the return of the 5% RA, but due to the wait the pro-Russia Dream Party has been posturing, plus there was even a cyber attack on Georgia. Now that everything is coming to a head the US is strongly advising Georgia to stick with the original agreement.

Posted by Looed on the 19th January :-

Part 2
At the same time, calls for imposing sanctions and other punitive measures against the Georgian authorities became more frequent in the United States, said Mullin, who, for his part, joined these calls and submitted his sanctions act to the House of Representatives early this year to ensure fair business practices in Georgia.
The congressman concludes his message with the hope that the Georgian government will stop aggression against American companies and for many years will remain a reliable strategic partner of the United States.
This is not the first open "written" warning that Washington is making to the current leadership of Georgia. Increased criticism from the strategic partner gives the opposition reason to argue that the current government of Georgia acts to the detriment of its country and damages both political opponents within the country and the image of Georgia in the international arena.
As for the ruling party, its representatives each time find warnings from the US their excuses and explanations, seeing them as misinformation coming from the political opposition or the narrow interests of certain American politicians in Georgia. This time, since the text of the appeal is about an American company, the Georgian Dream considered that the statement and its author are related to the interests of Frontera Resources.

Article from https://regnum.ru/news/2833436.html

Posted by Looed on the 19th January :-

Georgia received yet another warning from the USA
TBILISI , January 19, 2020 , 16:40 - REGNUM The Georgian government received another warning from the US representative - this time from Republican Congressman Markvey Mullin , who posted on Twitter his open letter to Georgian Prime Minister George Gaharii and urged him to end the oppression American companies.
The congressman also addressed his message to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo , the ministers of trade, finance, energy, the co-chairs of the Group of Friends of Georgia in the US Congress and the national security adviser. Among the public addressees of Mullin’s message were two television companies Mtavari Archi and TV Pirveli, which were opposed to the current Georgian authorities.
Marcvein Mullin joins the recent message of his colleagues, co-chairs of the Group of Friends of Georgia - Adam Kinsinger and Jerry Connolly , who almost a month ago, on December 13, sent a full “alarm” letter to the Georgian authorities because of Georgia’s deviation from the path of democratic reforms.
“ As a member of Congress, I am writing to you because of my growing concern about Georgia’s tangible deviation from democratic values ??and the associated deterioration of the economy, ” Mullin begins his message.
Judging by the letter, the main subject of his concern was the attitude of the Georgian authorities towards the American oil and gas company Frontera Resources, which has been working in Georgia for many years trying to find new deposits and broadcasts about the presence of rich energy reserves on the Black Sea shelf. But she has not yet presented evidence of her hypothesis and research results.
“Despite the progress that Georgia has achieved since independence in 1991, a tangible negative trend has emerged in recent years in indicators of democracy and a free market economy, which has not gone unnoticed in the United States. The result of all this is a reduction in foreign direct investment, as American and European business interests are attacked in Georgia with the aim of harassment and expropriation. An excellent example of this is the oil and gas company Frontera Resources from Texas, ”the congressman writes.
He further confirmed the US dissatisfaction with the policies of the current government of Georgia by the fact that Facebook closed social networks associated with the ruling party “Georgian Dream”, which, according to the congressman, were aimed at suppressing opposition views and spreading anti-Western sentiments in Georgia. Mullin believes that these accounts were mainly directed against the United States.
The United States, according to the Congressman, reacted to the actions of the Georgian authorities accordingly and reflected in the budget laws for 2019 and 2020 concern about the progressive hostile actions of the Georgian government against democratic values, principles of a free market economy and American business interests

Posted by Looed on the 19th January :-

Vice-Speaker of Parliament Gia Volski says the critical letter from US Congressman Marquin Malin is biased and serves the interests of a particular company, Frontera.

Republican Congressman Malin in his letter to Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia expresses concern over the deviation from democratic values ??and the worsening economic situation.

As Congressman writes, Georgia has shown negative tendencies towards the indicators of democracy and free market economy, which have reduced foreign investment. He cites the example of the oil and gas company Frontera Resources and the deletion of profile pages from Facebook.

In response to Malin, Gia Volski said that Georgia-US relations have not been at such a high level since Georgia's independence. As for Frostera's Vice-Speaker, the dispute is pending before the Arbitration Court and is a commercial dispute.

"I think the announcement is biased and is in the interest of a particular company ... I think it is so baseless and so contrary to the reality of Georgia that I am convinced that specific well-known political parties will somehow get an objective and real picture," he said. Volski told reporters.

As for Malini's resolution on sanctions on fair business partnership in Georgia, Volski said the congressman had a similar initiative in 2017, but the document was not discussed.

Frontera Resources is a US-based company that aims to extract oil and gas. Frontera Western Georgia has been operating in Georgia since 1997, and during that time they have repeatedly announced that they have found a large supply of gas, but this has not been confirmed.

Frontera Western Georgia owns a 50-percent stake in the state, namely the Baptism and Gas Corporation. The state and Frontera are suing each other in the arbitration court.

Posted on https://on.ge/story/48991-??????????-?????????????-??-??????????-?????????-????????-???????????-??????-????????????-???????

Posted by Looed on the 19th January :-

"Friends Of Georgia" Group
In the article I posted a few minutes ago it references a letter "from the Chairman of the Friends of Georgia". FRR are a partner of the group ad you can see on the following link

https://afgeorgia.org/our-partners/

Apologies if this is old news.

Posted by Chris572 on the 19th January :-

Fantastic work Looed,

Had a look myself this morning and found a copy of the letter at the bottom of this link , letters dated jan 13th and at the bottom you can see 8 Secretaries of State have been cc’d in , including Mike Pompeo

https://forum.ge/?f=29&showtopic=35135386

Sergi Kapanadze is a deputy speaker of Georgia's Parliament and here his comments regarding the letter (article was posted 30mins ago btw)

European Parliament lawmaker Sergi Kapanadze says the critical letter from US Congressman Marvin Malin should be a "wake-up call" to the authorities. The lawmaker stated this with the main channel.

https://on.ge/story/48987-??-????-????-?????-????????????????-????-????????????????-????????-????????????-???????

Posted by Looed on the 19th January :-

Letter from US Congressman to Georgian Govt, references FRR
"Republican Member of the US Congress, Markuin Malin, addressed an open letter to the head of the Georgian government, Giorgi Gakharia. The congressman calls on the Georgian government to stop its hostility towards American companies.

As Malin writes in the letter, he is concerned about continued deviation from Georgia's democratic values ??and economic deterioration.

"As a member of Congress, I write to you about my growing concern about the continuing deviation from Georgia's democratic values ??and the associated economic deterioration.

With this in mind, I am joining a letter from my colleagues in Congress, Chairmen of the Friends of Georgia, Adam Kinsinger and Gary Connol, dated December 13, addressing concerns about the widespread democratic reform decision and concerns about the use of violence against the protest.

Despite the progress Georgia has made since independence in 1991, there has been a steady negative trend in the indicators of a democratic and free market economy in recent years, which has not gone unnoticed in the United States. The result is a decline in FDI in Georgia, as American and European business interests have been subjected to attacks in Georgia for oppression and expropriation. An excellent example of this is the oil and gas company Frontera Resources, Texas. Moreover, US social media company Facebook said it had recently closed a wide network of accounts linked to the Georgian Dream party and appeared to be engaged in coordinated, non-contentious behavior to stifle opposition views in Georgia and spread anti-Western sentiment, particularly in the US - min The opposite.

Such a deteriorating environment is also reflected in the House of Representatives as well as the Senate and the president approved a two-row, the annual budget law in 2019 and 2020, the Government of progressive actions hostile to democratic values, free market principles and reflect the concerns of the American business against a.

For the first time in modern Georgian history, your country was viewed in the negative light and cautiously when discussing US budget laws.

In view of the negative trend I have described and to help stop this trend, concerns have been raised as well as calls for sanctions and other punitive measures. I join this call for reform and file an Act of Honest Business Practices in Georgia with the US House of Representatives earlier this year.

I hope that Georgia will continue to be America's strategic partner for many more years. I also hope that your government will stop aggressive action against American companies and act quickly on concerns about the threat to democracy and economic prosperity that the Georgian people deserve so much, "Congressman Malin wrote."

https://netgazeti.ge/news/420686/ (you need to google translate)

Posted by Madpunter on the 18th January :-

In the Ukraine interview Zaza stated reserves of 30 TCF and in excess of 14 billion barrels of oil, which is 19.1+ billion barrels of oil equivalent. IMHO as stated previously, Zaza is stating reserves due to independent verification by BP. If these figures are correct, another way to place them in context is to compare with BP's current reserves = 19.9 billion barrels. Therefore, if BP on it's own was to buyout Block 12, it would double it's reserves, yet some poster's on here think my valuations are fantasy.

https://www.bp.com/en/global/corporate/what-we-do/bp-at-a-glance.html

Posted by PJOHN on the 18th January :-

Gas is the future
https://energyfactor.exxonmobil.eu/news/6-charts-explain-natural-gas-will-fuel-future/

Georgia hydrocarbons news
https://georgiaoilandgas.ge/news/

Exxon again!
https://agenda.ge/en/news/2018/2204

BP looking well placed also!
https://www.bp.com/georgia-role-in-transporting-oil-and-gas-to-europe/

Posted by Jonathansxx on the 18th January :-

Large assets
They have a unique attraction. ;-)
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1b7Af_dHuqdctdzoambkDDnc9Qz-UDzwH/view?usp=drivesdk

Posted by zeninvestor on the 18th January :-

Georgia hydrocarbon news
‘GEPlan Senior Geologist Angelo Ricciato said “Onshore Georgia and in particular the Kura Kartili Foreland Basin may turn out to be one of the most exciting emerging hydrocarbon plays of the coming 5-10 years.”’

We are waiting ...

Posted by PJOHN on the 18th January :-

Very interesting read
There set up similar to ours! Caymen registered and work out of Houston, ring bell anyone?
https://www.energyvoice.com/oilandgas/176249/driller-wins-622-million-arbitration-award/

Nice read
http://georgiatoday.ge/news/12725/British-Petroleum-in-Georgia%3A-Ongoing-Achievements

https://agenda.ge/en/news/2016/1148

https://www.azernews.az/oil_and_gas/160503.html
Look at our field potential!

Posted by Devex on ii on the 18th January :-

The empty box is now clearly confirmed as full - and a fight to the death is taking place re ownership. Will we get our share one day?

Courtesy of Xenin on LSE …‘GEPlan Senior Geologist Angelo Ricciato said “Onshore Georgia and in particular the Kura Kartili Foreland Basin may turn out to be one of the most exciting emerging hydrocarbon plays of the coming 5-10 years.”’

And just in case you have forgotten the basin is here…

https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Map-of-the-Caucasus-region-showing-the-Tertiary-foreland-basins-Modified-after-Mauvilly_fig3_327120105

Posted by emblaze1 on the 17th January :-

Kipperman I always thought that the silence from them was due to
1. Them not trusting certain shareholders motives here given Zaza response at the last shareholders meeting that there were shorters sitting in the room.
2. Keeping Hope in the dark with information about production figures, etc with courtcases.
3. The ongoing court cases and being told by lawyers to not say anything even to shareholders.
4. The on going arbitration with GG which needed a comms lockdown. IMHO
The fact ZZ and SN have so much skin in the game same as shareholders in FRR this gave me the confidence that they would not stich us up as ultimately they would be shooting themselves in the foot as well. But there is so much money at stake here anything is possible and yes it is so frustrating that they cannot say something to us.
After all the help we SH have done supporting them and what we have been through together you would hope they would do the right thing.
The next month or two maybe we will find out more what's happening and all may be eventually be rewarded fingers crossed with our faith in this board or NOT and SH end up with nothing nightmare scenario no one wants.
GLA

Posted by Symore_Bottoms on ii on the 17th January :-

Interesting discovery from oopsi - perhaps another small flicker of sign of life but what’s driving this activity and why now? Probably more importantly, if there was/is intention to shaft the shareholders, surely it would have been smarter for Zaza to use another company name than ‘Frontera’ (given all the eye balls on us at the moment not to mention our own super sleuthers looking for any scrap of info). Having said that, the shareholder is Zaza’s son and not any one from FRR, so legally separate entities but related parties?

Anyway, still no update from Texas. Still no news on the Arbitration. But some traction in New York on the liquidation of FRCC, which continues to go through the process (and it appears Hope is continuing to put up a good fight despite racking up legal costs). But he will have a long fight on his hands if he tries to reverse the farmout from FEGL to FRUS (could take years especially if the Georgian Govt ratified the farmout deal). For now, I think the Texas hearing may provide a good idea where the whole legal thing is heading. Maybe the reason for having this hearing behind closed doors was to reveal to the Judge certain malpractices by OMF and also share this evidence with Hope without jeopardising SEC investigation. I speculate of course.

Finally for the record, our CLNs are fixed income bonds (@12%) bought by institutional investors (not banks) and fully repayable as ‘bullet’ on maturity. Bank loans are not arranged in this structure. The Original Bonds, which were restructured in 2011, were held by DDJ and Plainfield, both asset managers.

While the fight continues, we mushrooms should try to stay away from the dark side. If it does go very bad, there will be plenty of time to feel cheated and bitter.

Posted by theprodigy on the 17th January :-

more EU & UN Conetations
as new US ambassador to Georgia is sworn in

http://georgiatoday.ge/news/19092/New-US-Ambassador-to-Georgia-Takes-Oath

Posted by R8pilot on the 17th January :-

Hopefully it’s our gas they’ll be using!

http://georgiatoday.ge/news/19095/PM%3A-Energy-Efficiency-Critically-Important-for-Economic-Growth-

Posted by regdik on the 17th January :-

Alas the poor dog died of old age and the car damaged its axel on the bump on the road. ZaZa is suing the council for not repairing the bump in the road but the council are counter suing ZaZa as FRR sledge hammer gang failed to flatten the bump and spent too much time trying to smash a nut (on Hopes head). The sledge hammer gang did not complete the task as they were on strike for not being paid.
Just business as usual

Posted by Chris572 on the 17th January :-

Article this morning .. so exxon study of Georgia should now be completed
Georgia has announced an international tender for 2 oil and gas blocks offshore the Black Sea. Again
Investors will be offered 2 subsoil plots with an area of ??5.3 thousand km2 and 3.5 thousand km2 off the coast of Georgia
Georgia has announced an international tender for 2 oil and gas blocks offshore the Black Sea. Again
Tbilisi, Jan 17 - IA Neftegaz.RU. The State Oil and Gas Agency (SAOG) has announced an open international tender for a general license for the use of oil and gas resources on the Black Sea shelf.
This is stated in the message of the agency.

Investors will be offered 2 subsoil plots with an area of ??5.3 thousand km2 and 3.5 thousand km2 off the coast of Georgia.
Companies with at least 5 years of experience in the search and (or) offshore oil and gas production can take part in the tender.
Complete information about the facilities will be provided to applicants on February 1, 2020.
Applications will end on April 20, 2020.

It was previously planned that the Georgian government would announce an auction for the development of oil and gas resources in the Black Sea at the end of 2019.
By this time, the study of the potential of the Georgian Black Sea sector, which was conducted by ExxonMobil, was to be completed.
According to the government’s plans, exploration (geological exploration) will give Georgia the opportunity to obtain certain industrial volumes of domestic gas.

Oil and gas production in Georgia is carried out in the 1930s. and peak production occurred in 1980-1983.
In 2017, 32 thousand tons of oil was produced in Georgia, which is 17.1% less than a year earlier.
In 2018 production decreased by 6.3%, which was the lowest indicator for all years of oil production in the country.
In 2018, gas production in Georgia amounted to 16.5 million m3.
Given that Georgia consumes on average about 1.2 million tons / year of oil products and about 2.5 billion m3 / year of gas, the bulk of hydrocarbons are imported from Azerbaijan, Russia, Romania and Bulgaria.

Georgia has subsoil areas that are promising from the point of view of hydrocarbons, including on the shelf.
In 2000-2009 Anadarko conducted geological exploration in the Georgian sector of the Black Sea and discovered prospective oil reserves in 2 subsoil areas in the amount of about 140 million tons.
In 2016, the US Frontera Resources announced the opening of 5.3 trillion cubic meters of gas in eastern Georgia, promising to begin exporting gas to Turkey and Eastern Europe in 2021.

https://neftegaz.ru/news/dobycha/519392-gruziya-obyavila-mezhdunarodnyy-tender-na-2-neftegazovykh-bloka-na-shelfe-chernogo-morya-snova/

Posted by bugsy-b on the 16th January :-

The Frontera companies Frontera Resources Us LLC, and Frontera Supply and Trading LLC have been on the go for years (2015 and 2016)... Are these just the same 2 companies with a little translation error ?.. https://www.corporationwiki.com/Texas/Houston/steve-c-nicandros/30166378.aspx

Not really been researching this thread, Been at graft all day and am now sipping Cognac, but I'm wondering if these 2 companies have now "set up camp" in Georgia, And Nikolaz is just heading them up ?...

Posted by Aurora1 on the 16th January :-

Not sure bugs could be. Could also be incorporating them in Georgia now that they may be needed.

Posted by regdik on the 16th January :-

This event is way out of my knowledge zone but Oppsi’s point resonates with me that in a case of asset transfer to a family member (the LtO would have to go through the approval process with the GG) may be tested in court by those interested parties (SH/Creditors). Aurora1 has also a valid point.
So if these have been created by “the family” in 2015/6 to take advantage of the spin off business (Multimillion value) if the licence holding company was sold off. Being a local business owner and Georgian “the family” could add value to a company developing a large field (providing the necessary service infrastructure).
1 Why use a closely linked name – unless wanting to retain a close association to the sold off entity (known entity).
2. If he wanted to stuff us this would not be logical due to the close association and potential future litigation. Better use a distant relative or close associate.
3. These companies were created when the large gas numbers were being proved thinking ahead?)

Yet again guess work but there is a lot more info now seeping out.

Posted by Aurora1 on the 16th January :-

So the Trading company could well be a Georgian vehicle to become an agent for multiple companies to perform services Agents typically have to have a local owner. The big boys doing the main services like wireline, well test etc etc will have agents in georgia already but there will need to be many more companies come in for transport/accommodation/ ppe/ small consumables etc etc (the list is endless), The Agent tales a small commission on anything sold but they handle all the admin and local fixing and translation.

Below is the mail from earlier with the company information
cheers
Aurora

Company Name: Frontera USA LLC Legal form: Limited Liability Company Identification number: 405373313 Registration number: 15/01/2020 Registering authority: LEPL National Agency of Public Registry
Legal address:
Georgia, Tbilisi, Vake district, k. Kekelidze St., N5 Additional Information: Email: fronteraus@gmail.com The person providing the information is responsible for the authenticity of the additional information.

Information on the process of liquidation / reorganization / insolvency
it's not registered
Leadership / representation
Director - Nikoloz Mamulaishvili, 01017019486
Partners
Owner of Share Nikoloz Mamulaishvili, Shareholder, 01017019486 100%
Commitment

https://enreg.reestri.gov.ge/main.php?value=Frontera&state=search_by_name

SubjectCompany Name: Frontera Trading LLC Legal Form: Limited Liability Company Identification Number: 405373466 Registration Number: 16/01/2020 Registering Authority: LEPL National Agency of Public Registry Legal Address: Georgia, Tbilisi, Vake district, K. .Kekelidze str. N 5 Additional Information: Email: Email: fronteratradingllc@gmail.com

PartnersOwner of Share Nikoloz Mamulaishvili, Shareholder, 01017019486 100%Commitment

https://enreg.reestri.gov.ge/main.php?value=Frontera&state=search_by_name

Posted by R8pilot on the 16th January :-

Georgian people want EU & NATO
http://georgiatoday.ge/en/news/list/101/Sports

Posted by cabraz on the 16th January :-

It feels like
every time we get 1 step forward (mentally), we then seem to take another 2 back with the next bit of info our fabulous sleuths uncover - when oh when will it end?! One thing that I just refuse to accept though, is that SN or ZM would have gone into this with the idea of fleecing us - they have both spent years building their own, personal reputations as business men and men of important standing, including US/Georgian govt links - would they seriously look at chucking all that away for the sake of greed? SN is a fair bit older of course, but Zaza has still got years ahead of him to continue in the O&G markets - and would International SMs honestly consider associating with such behaviour??? I just can't allow myself to believe it and hope and pray that I'm proven right. Thanks again to all who sleuth, translate and decipher - I wouldn't be able to make head nor tail of half of these docs! GLAd when it's all over! ;)

Posted by jme1976 on the 16th January :-

I asked Symore on ii about the Texas case last week, this is his reply...

Chiltern - Hope went to Texas court to enforce the personal guarantees that Zaza and SN had issued against the CLNs. Why Texas? Because SN is resident there and so is FRR’s HO.

Anyway, their guarantees were also secured by their personal shareholdings in FRR of 250M shares each. The cash coupon due on the Notes was around $2m hence the claim for that amount. Makes you wonder why the Directors would put their personal wealth on the line for a company that was seemingly failing. People also conveniently forget that they converted around $26m of their PRNs in to ordinary debt at a hefty premium of 1p thereby automatically subordinating their claim rights below OMF. And what did Hope do for our company? Sweet fck all. But he now wants to take the high moral ground for acquiring a deeply discounted debt. On top of that, he was colluding with other shorters (incl. YA) and interfering with the NOMAD. There is also the allegation of market manipulation. Ultimately, he chose to put himself in the middle of distressed company’s and if he ends up getting nothing, there will be no tears from my side. He is trying to loot FRR investors for his personal gain, and I just pray there is some dirt on him so he ends up with nothing. He will get his comeuppance (I like that word, comeuppance).

JMO