Member Info for Madpunter

Posted by Earsbern on the 29th July :-

U.S. Congress members keep up pressure
6 Texan republican congress members have written to Secretary of State Pompeo with further criticism of Ivanishvili and GD failings. Nothing really new, but keeping up heavy pressure on all the known fronts.
Worth a read, and Frontera spoken about, as you'd expect.

http://civil.ge/archives/360799

Posted by Looed on the 29th July :-

This article has a short clip of Zaza and seems to be an edited version of the 2m clip that was posted yesterday (I think by DomFok)

Frontera's president has called on the government to end the slanderous campaign and engage in a real dialogue, with Zaza Mamulashvili saying that the Georgian Dream is trying to convince a partner country that it is creating good conditions for American investment, but in fact the opposite is true.

The Prime Minister makes a statement as if the state is no longer terminating the contract with us, at the same time the Ministry of Economy sends us a message of completely opposite content, and this is when the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Georgian Ambassador to the United States begin intensive meetings with American politicians. Contract with a large American investor. This is completely unacceptable, - says Mamulashvili.
Recall that yesterday "Frontera" released another letter calling on the government to stop harmful propaganda.

The Georgian government, in the light of the decision of the Hague Arbitration Tribunal, still extended the contract with Frontera and allowed the company to continue operating in the part of the original contract area where oil production was still under way from the Soviet period. The Georgian government justified this decision with the strategic tasks facing the country, in particular, the need for Georgia to have a positive reputation as an investment country and to maintain a positive relationship with the United States.

https://mtavari.tv/news/11798-kartuli-otsneba-motquebit-amtkitsebs-rom-amerikul

The latest translation is also from Mtavari.tv so they seem to be re-marketing this story to get as much exposure as they can. I think this must have been broadcast before DomFoks latest find

Posted by Blownitalready on the 29th July :-

More of the same - just slightly different wording
Frontera accuses the Georgian government of threats. The company claims that the Georgian government is hiding the full picture from US officials and the media and assures them that it will allow the company to continue operating, but in fact warns that it will again try to terminate the contract.

According to Frontera , the Georgian embassy in the United States is also involved in the government propaganda of lies . In response to the sharp revelations , the Georgian Dream cites an arbitration decision, which is read differently by the parties.

The opposition sees corrupt interests on the part of the government and criticizes them because the issue of the arbitration dispute is completely vague. According to them , the government's attitude towards Frontera is not just a problem of one company and harms the investment environment of the country.

The Prime Minister said a few days ago that the government would not terminate the contract with Frontera . Earlier, the government was repeatedly criticized by the US Congressmen for harassing an American company.

According to the opposition, this is why the government had to make a concession to the company. It is unknown at this time what he will do after leaving the post. Frontera plans to make the letter public, and expects even more critical statements from American partners in the coming days.

https://formulanews.ge/News/34251

Posted by DomFok on the 29th July :-

Zaza studio interview (needs translating)
Morning/Afternoon Looed
At 12:10 - Zaza is in the studio and speaks in detail later on. https://www.facebook.com/TvMtavari/videos/%E1%83%93%E1%83%A6%E1%83%98%E1%83%A1-%E1%83%A1%E1%83%A2%E1%83%A3%E1%83%9B%E1%83%90%E1%83%A0%E1%83%98-%E1%83%9B%E1%83%97%E1%83%90%E1%83%95%E1%83%90%E1%83%A0-%E1%83%90%E1%83%A0%E1%83%AE%E1%83%96%E1%83%94-%E1%83%9B%E1%83%98%E1%83%AE%E1%83%94%E1%83%98%E1%83%9A-%E1%83%A0%E1%83%90%E1%83%9B%E1%83%98%E1%83%A8%E1%83%95%E1%83%98%E1%83%9A%E1%83%98-%E1%83%96%E1%83%90%E1%83%96%E1%83%90-%E1%83%9B%E1%83%90%E1%83%9B%E1%83%A3%E1%83%9A%E1%83%90%E1%83%98%E1%83%A8%E1%83%95%E1%83%98%E1%83%9A%E1%83%98-%E1%83%93%E1%83%90-%E1%83%92%E1%83%98%E1%83%9D%E1%83%A0%E1%83%92%E1%83%98-%E1%83%A0%E1%83%A3%E1%83%AE%E1%83%90%E1%83%AB%E1%83%94/602501477063475/

Posted by Looed on the 29th July :-

RE: Ambassador Degnan claps back
I am guessing this rose-tinted report is why she clapped back -

"US State Secretary Mike Pompeo and Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia have spoken on the phone and discussed a range of issues, including the October parliamentary elections, Georgia’s ‘effective response’ to the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia’s redoubled occupation efforts during the pandemic."

And

"The officials also discussed Georgia’s Euro-Atlantic integration process, economic cooperation, the attraction of American investments in Georgia and the importance of Black sea security for the whole region and Euro-Atlantic security."

https://agenda.ge/en/news/2020/2380

Posted by Looed on the 29th July :-

Ambassador Duggan claps back
At the end of the day, Kelly Degnan had to repeat the reprimand messages that the first person in her ministry had personally handed to Giorgi Gakharia. The US ambassador has made no secret of the fact that Washington will observe the 2020 parliamentary elections with special attention.

For Washington, this election is much more than just a vote, we must also assume from the statement of Mike Pompeo. The Secretary of State shared a short comment about the telephone conversation with Gakharia on Twitter. Where he emphasizes that the conversation focused on the 2020 elections and that voting should take place in a free, equal and transparent environment.

The same statement was issued by the State Department, but the Georgian Dream, which the First Chamber of Congress considers to be an oligarchic government, chooses the posture of a political ostrich in this case as well. Ivanishvili's team claims that Pompeo was interested in the achievements of the Georgian government in the fight against Kovid 19.

Coronavirus will no longer be a political lifeline for Ivanishvili's gudni, in parallel with a verbal warning, just three days ago, the lower house of Congress imposed Georgia's first sanction and froze about $ 20 million in aid. However, this could only be the beginning of broader sanctions that threaten Ivanishvili and his entourage if they choose to usurp power instead of democracy.

It is likely that with the election approaching, messages from Washington will become increasingly strict and direct. The reason for this is the rigid and undemocratic rule of the Georgian Dream. The third president of Georgia believes that Bidzina Ivanishvili and the Georgian Dream have left no room for diplomatic courtesy.

This is the second case when Pompeo Ivanishvili's team says something in rude diplomatic language. A year ago, the then Prime Minister of the country, Mamuka Bakhtadze, taught a lesson in geopolitics and reminded who Georgia's true friends are and why the port of Anaklia was in the strategic interests of both Georgia and the United States. Then "Dream" did not listen. Now is the time for the second lesson.

https://mtavari.tv/news/11771-ashsh-archevnebi-2020-demokratiulad-chatarebas

(MTavari is very Zaza friendly. The article includes a 6m news segment, presumably reactions from a variety of Opposition leaders and some talking heads. Nothing from Zaza and no FRR mentions as far as I can tell. My gut feel is not to translate and wait for more specific news. If you feel strongly that we should translate please let me know)

Posted by Looed on the 29th July :-

Another comment from the Pompeo-Georgian PM call
"The Secretary urged continued efforts to strengthen the independence of Georgia’s judiciary as an essential step for attracting foreign investment"

https://ge.usembassy.gov/secretary-pompeos-call-with-georgian-prime-minister-gakharia-july-27/

Posted by Earsbern on the 28th July :-

Part 2
Genuine election wonks like me may also like to know that the PR system used is the 'closed list' method, where people vote for the party rather than individuals, and the party's published list of their candidates is in the order that the party wishes them to be elected - e.g. the party's most preferred candidate is top of the list, and so is their first one 'past the post'. This method was used for UK elections to the European Parliament.

Posted by Madpunter on the 28th July :-

Earsbern - Although no date has been set, the election has to be held before the end of October, hence my previous post of 'T - 100', when there were 100 days to the 31st October.
http://aceproject.org/today/election-calendar/election-calendar/elections-calendar

T - 95 and counting.
https://www.weeksuntil.com/date/2020/october/31

Posted by Earsbern on the 28th July :-

Election dates and procedure.
No matter how hard I looked, I could find no mention of the official election dates. So I emailed the Georgian embassy in London with a few basic questions about the election procedure. Just for info, This is it :-
____________________________
Hi - I have an interest in election methodologies, and would like to follow the georgian parliamentary elections in October. I understand that 120 seats are chosen by proportional representation and 30 seats by majority vote, and that these votes are cast over 2 rounds. I would be grateful if you could kindly find the time to answer the following few basic questions for me so I can better understand what is happening.
The questions are :---

1. What are the dates for rounds 1 & 2, please?
2. Does each voter have 2 votes - one for the PR seats, and another one for the majoritarian seats?
3. Will the PR voting paper have the same list of candidates for the whole country?
4. Are all PR votes decided by completion of the count in round 1 - e.g. the PR seats do not go forward to round 2.
5. After round 1, do majoritarian seats go forward to round 2 only if no candidate has more than 50% of the vote?

Thank you for your time.
-------------------------------------------------------
And the reply (next day) :-
-------------------------------------------------------
Thank you for your interest in the upcoming parliamentary elections in Georgia, to be held in late October this year. Please kindly find below answers to your questions.

1. Regular elections of the Parliament of Georgia shall be held in October of the calendar year during which the term of authority of the Parliament expires. The President of Georgia shall call the date of the elections, upon countersignature of the Prime-Minister of Georgia, no later than 60 days before the elections. Accordingly, the exact date has not been defined yet.
2. Yes, each voter has 2 votes - one for the PR seats and another for the majoritarian seats.
3. Yes, PR voting paper will have the same list of candidates for the whole country.
4. PR votes are decided by completion of the count and there is no 2nd round for PR seats.
5. Yes, if no candidate has more than 50% of the vote, there will be 2nd round between first two candidates.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The dates, then, should be published any time now.
In theory, the parliamentary majority could be decided after round 1 (presumably in early October), when at least 120 seats will have been decided.
Genuine election wonks like me may also like to know that the PR system used is the 'closed list' method, where people vote for the party rather than individuals, and the party's published list of their candidates is in the order that the party wishes them to be elected - e.g. the party's most preferred candidate is top of the list, and so is their first

Posted by regdik on the 28th July :-

I have to agree with those that think this is an extremely abnormal situation and normal (or what we would expect to be normal) business rules seems to be totally out of the window.
ZaZa is holding a consistent stance and GG seem to have given well publicised concessions with one hand whilst continuing to threaten FRR with loss of licence on the other. Not a very clever move as it was always likely that ZaZa would do what he has just done – publish.
Yet again ZaZa wants a joint release of the Arb results redacting commercial and sensitive information but GG seem to think this as full publication will damage FRR. So we have a Mexican stand off which is strange as a supposed “real copy” of the Arb results have been released by mischief makers - so how totally accurate was that document and the fact it has not been acknowledged by either party?
Other snippet’s keep coming out like the specific area’s and strangely the depth at which they can drill (never known that to be included in an LoT) even in all of the presentations from FRR nothing has appeared giving a limit to depth. Looks to me that the mother load will be found 1m below this limit now imposed by GG ??

Who is backing FRR/ZaZa as their continued existence is impossible to comprehend. I think the only revenue possible would be the gas to a handful of villages as this would be hard to switch off and produce very little revenue – but FRR accounts have been frozen. Any oil from the wells would have to be stored as access to rail/road has been curtailed by the GG.

FRR with no money, a government at war with FRR, US flexing its influence and all we can do is watch the politics play out. Just waiting now for the next episode and the response from GG. How do they answer the second attempt to throw FRR off the block....who needs Netflix with this going on.

Posted by DomFok on the 28th July :-

Pt.2
We are not against the publication of this decision, but it should be done after following the relevant legal procedures. What do I mean by that? - A decision that contains a lot of technical, financial, commercial and personal information that may not be desirable to disclose. "We will legally agree to this with all parties and this process will probably take another 10 days or 2 weeks, and as soon as we get the consent, then we can officially confirm in writing to the state that we also agree to make it public,"

In the interview, Zaza Mamulaishvili also said that last year it was planned to create a new international consortium for oil production in Georgia, in which, in addition to Frontera, two other large energy companies would participate. According to Mamulaishvili, the creation of this consortium was thwarted by the Georgian government.

"Last year we thought of forming a consortium with two major US energy companies and launching a field development program in Kakheti. We asked the Georgian government, the Prime Minister and the Minister of Economy to meet with us and other consortium members to confirm that Georgia welcomed the investment in oil. Implementation, "Mamulaishvili said.

Recall that the tribunal of the International Court of Arbitration in The Hague decided on April 17 on the ongoing dispute between Frontera, the Oil and Gas Agency and the Oil and Gas Corporation. The dispute has been going on in court for several years and within it the state-owned company Frontera has been arguing for a breach of license requirements.

The arbitral tribunal upheld the GOGC's appeal, ordering the transfer of 99% of Frontera's license to the state, which Frontera even enforced.

https://bm.ge/ka/article/gogc-c-gatyuebt-ekonomikis-saministroc-da-xelisuflebac---frontera-s-prezidenti-/61220

Posted by DomFok on the 28th July :-

Interesting comments from Zaza
Headline “ GOGC IS CHEATING, BOTH THE MINISTRY OF ECONOMY AND THE GOVERNMENT - PRESIDENT OF FRONTERA”
Pt1
Zaza Mamulaishvili, President of the energy company Frontera, talks about the statements made by the Government of Georgia and the Ministry of Economy a few days ago in the program "Case Course".

The statement said that on July 27, the government decided not to terminate the existing contract with Frontera. Zaza Mamulaishvili says that terminating the contract with them would be an illegal action, because the termination of the contract is not mentioned in the decision of the arbitral tribunal. However, the president of Frontera says that the government's statement was false, because in parallel with the announcement that the state would no longer terminate the contract with them, the company received a letter from the Ministry of Economy stating that the government did not refuse to terminate the contract with them. The termination process was postponed for some time.

"You are cheating the gas and oil corporation, the Ministry of Economy and the government. After the Prime Minister made a statement last Thursday, it was illegal, but he still made a statement and said that the government was no longer going to terminate the contract with us; Two things happened after that. One thing happened was that the very next day, the State Department, through the embassy, ??immediately began disseminating this information to political circles in the United States, in Washington. At the same time, the Ministry of Economy sent us an official message telling us that they had only temporarily suspended the procedure for canceling the contract. what does this mean? - If before we were written that on July 27 we would terminate the contract illegally, but to terminate it is now unclear. "They may stop on the 29th or they may stop on the 5th of August or in just 3 months."

In the program "Case Course" Mamulaishvili also said that the company agrees to make public the decision of the International Court of Arbitration.

"We, of course, are not and have never been against announcing the arbitration decision. Even from this broadcast I can call on the representatives of the state that you want today, you want tomorrow, to meet together and publicly announce the decision of the international arbitration. This will be very good as it is not necessary for a person to be a lawyer in order for him to understand the content of this decision.

Posted by EkXoc on the 28th July :-

I think its fair to say anyone posting here regularly has a sizable stake.
Fact of the the matter is as Dulwich points out there are stakes much higher than what any of us have and the players are as big as they get, which explains the length of time this is taking and the fact that FRR has not folded as any other AIM company would have done. I have seen companies lie to shareholders and have no real product to speak of and then fold in pretty much silence. This is not that. The fact that Gerogia has not blossomed as a result of its close ties with the US and that no one here could name any western company expanding into Georgia speaks volumes. Add to that the accounts of other western companies experiences in Georgia I think its clear that the GG are very responsbile for preventing any western investment. This is the obstacle that needs to be cleared.. Ive watched the court cases play out with very little result and can't help feeling that the problems associated with those cases are surmountable. This is all about clearing the GG interference and we can see high profile attempts at that on going. This process it should be remembered has a very definate time limit so this will not drag on for ver.

Posted by Dulwichman on the 28th July :-

Thanks EkXoc there two things that keep bugging me 1) why are we still alive - it really is a most unusual state of affairs most but the big boys would have chucked in the towel a long time ago. 2) I am certainly not the expert here but many on here are - as Mr Mole points out - the O and G is still not guaranteed in full commercial quantities and from what I can gather is quite leading edge tech stuff which is risky there are easier sources in the world and at low cost still. Yet somehow we just keep going on and still fighting without any commercial income.

Could it be that it is not really the O and G that is really important although if it all works a real bonus in more ways than one and for many different interests it is the ability JUST to influence the region ie government level stuff.
If true AND we are still alive than that's good enough for me and should be for the majority of us all and we will probably never know the ins and outs of a ducks arXX of how or even why it happens . One thing for sure it is all above our heads with the lack of information and people seem to be interested in every little detail and its possible nuances (understandably so) but is probably of little importance

Posted by Looed on the 28th July :-

Is this another new statement ?
"The investor must have a guarantee that if he makes an investment, the government will not come and will not take it away" - Frontera representative

We demand from the government to create a stable investment environment, "said Zaza Mamulashvili, a representative of Frontera in Georgia.

According to him, American investments are vital for the country in this situation.

"We are trying to meet with the government, but they do not meet us. They only talk to us in public. We are trying to convince the government that we need to create a stable business environment. The investor must have a guarantee that if he makes investments today, the government will not come soon and will not take away these investments. The only thing the company needs from the government now is to create a friendly environment for investment. It is also necessary for the government to guarantee the observance of the terms of the agreement, which was signed in due time, ”Mamulashvili said.

We would like to remind you that the Government of Georgia has decided not to terminate the contract with Frontera Resources Georgia Corporation and to allow the company to continue operating in the part of the original contract area where oil production was still underway from the Soviet period. We are talking about about 1% of the state search area, because about 99% of this area "Frontera" has already returned to the state according to the arbitral award.

https://commersant.ge/ge/post/investors-unda-hqondes-garantia-rom-investicias-tu-gaaketebs-ar-mova-xelisufleba-da-ar-waartmevs-fronteras-warmomadgeneli

Posted by Moleinahole on the 28th July :-

Prod - the simple answer to your question is that nobody really knows yet. I'm not sure they would do things that differently however. Their standard response is to be litigious and combative and that goes back as far as the Azer period. Maybe it's the American way of doing business. But alot of the issues go back to persistent failure to produce oil from the drilling campaigns combined with not eliminating the loan note debt in 2010. But then Steve held alot of the paper. That predates the current govt.
If there was strong evidence to support obstruction it would have been pleaded at the arbitration. If it wasn't then it was negligent not to have done so. So we will see if they now publish the arbitration. It's FRR who are holding that back so I would suspect whatever was put forward the GG obviously are not too worried about.
In terms of the arbitration itself actually yes I do. I think they have been opportunistic but I haven't seen anything yet that backs up the claims the company has been materially obstructed. Have you?
And no you can't trust any govt even our own here! But they are not stupid and would have been well aware of Frontera connections if they have been obstructive. The one area I would pinpoint is whether we have been blocked on the old mineral license from the deeper gas again that would predate current govt and possibly a reluctance to reissue the license in 2017 to enable exploration to continue. But to be fair after 20 years it was incumbent on FRR to show some credible financed plans.
Finally I wouldn't get hung up on the 99% Vs 1%. The exploitation areas were never in question until the dispute really escalated post Nov 2017 but unless the arbitration explicitly addressed termination as Zaza claims then I've seen enough of the actual PSA now in documents on the company register and elsewhere to be worried about the consequences of material breach. The trap for Frontera now is ok off you go remploy the staff and where's your funding to settle debts and do some exploration.
It gives me no pleasure to be watching current events unfold. But I think it's a mistake to try and label the GG and Outrider as the bad guys so must be wrong as I think the situation here is more nuanced than that. They all have their faults.
How comfortable you are watching this unfold Ex might depend on the level of potential losses you face. Personally my expectation is I have lost a substantial sum of capital and any result since dec 2018 here is a unexpected windfall. I'm sure I'm not alone in that.

Posted by Looed on the 28th July :-

Pt.3 (and final part)

J1 - Georgian Oil and Gas Corporation started a lawsuit against „Frontera“ in the Arbitration Court in 2018, citing breach of contract. In April of this year, a Copenhagen court ruled that the American oil company had violated certain clauses of the contract, and the arbitral tribunal ordered the return of 99% of „Frontera's“ license to Georgia. The company has complied with the tribunal's decision and is currently conducting oil and gas exploration at the remaining 1%. The management team says that "Frontera" has the opportunity to use this chance. He will have the full support of the state, part of the opposition claims that the lawsuit has negatively affected the image of Georgia and scared foreign investors.

Giga Bokeria, Member of Parliament Fraction “European Georgia”, (GB) - First they created a whole scandal from this story, which has damaged the investment image of the country and everyone should understand that it does not only concern the interests of rich companies, but also ordinary, middle and poor classes, when the country has an image and when spending money here is risky.

Roman Gotsiridze, Chairman of Parliament Fraction “National Movement”, (RG) - „Frontera“ will have the right to continue operating until 2027, and on the other hand, the government will have to fulfill its obligations. Business must do its job and the government must not interfere in the business.

Kahkaber Kukava, Vice-speaker of Parliament, (KK) - Not only the government has won this dispute, it also has the right to terminate the contract in full, but precisely because we value the investment with the representatives of our partner country, we try to fully support the environment that will allow them to work in good faith. That was the essence of this offer.

Giorgi Volsky, First vice-speaker of Parliament, (GV) - This is an area of 50 square kilometers on which they operate and there were 10 times more area where absolutely no work was done and the contract was changed many times. Therefore, I think that if someone makes a statement to Washington and, moreover, spreads misinformation, it is the representation of "Frontera".

J1 - "Frontera" entered Georgia in 1997. The company has invested up to half a billion and has been able to extract only $ 60 million worth of oil and natural gas during that time.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZghWiKCBcJ8&feature=emb_title

Posted by Looed on the 28th July :-

Pt.2

J1 - "Frontera“ has been making a number of serious allegations against the Georgian government for years. To voice these allegations, according to representatives of the ruling team, the company has repeatedly used individual US congressmen and senators with the help of lobbyists, for which it has spent quite a large sum, more than $ 240,000. This is against the background of the fact that the former employees of the company have been demanding payment of the salary arrears for months. According to the decision of the Government of Georgia, the contract with "Frontera Resources" will no longer be terminated and the company will be given the opportunity to continue operating in 1% of the exploration area, only in Dedoplistskaro. The head of government explained this decision by saying that the country's investment climate and a secure business environment are important for Georgia. The Chairman of the Parliament noted that the offer of the Georgian government to the company "Frontera" once again confirms the responsible approach of the government towards American investments.

Archil Talakvadze, Chairman of the Parliament of Georgia, (AT) - This reaffirms our government's approach and responsible approach to American investment, and in this case, I think, we have once again shown to our partners that we have a constructive position and that any international and foreign investment in Georgia is safe.

Davit Zalkaniani, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Georgia, (DZ) - A commercial dispute cannot be detrimental to relations between 2 strategic partner states. In order to avoid any speculation, we think that this is an extremely important decision, to show the good will of the Georgian government, and our main strategic partners already see this very well.

Giorgi Gakharia, Prime Minister of Georgia, (GG) - We should not allow anyone, even by spreading false information, to question an investment environment and the business climate of the country. This one, the most important and the second - No one should be allowed to use the strategic partnership here for some purpose. And the third issue - of course, there are Georgian employees who say that they worked for this company and, of course, the interests of these people must be taken into account.

Posted by Looed on the 28th July :-

Translation #22, 1TV, Kelly Duggan and others, 7m7s,
Pt.1

Journalist 1 (J1) - Yesterday's decision of the Ministry of Economy failed to put an end to the dispute over Frontera. Following allegations of business harassment, the American company accuses the government of conducting a disinformation campaign. The American oil company considers as defamatory the government's move, according to which, despite winning the international arbitration dispute, the government will not terminate the contract with the company and will allow oil exploration to continue in 1% of the territory in Dedoplistskaro. Relations with the company, which entered Georgia 23 years ago to extract oil, were strained with the government 2 years ago. The dispute, which started with the argument of non-fulfillment of the contract, soon continued in the International Court of Arbitration.

J1 (Contd) - Threats, intimidation, slander, and misinformation from the state - the American oil company continues to claim that it is under pressure from the government. "Frontera" states that they are not allowed to operate freely in the Georgian market. The company notes that there is no legal basis for the unilateral termination of the contract and that the government is driven by only one goal - to make the American private sector lose interest in foreign direct investment in Georgia. What the American company writes in a statement blaming the Georgian government will be discussed by the US ambassador to Georgia in the context of disputes. In any case, Kelly Degnan, unlike the company, has not made any accusations against the Georgian side today. She did not discuss the details of the dispute either. The American diplomat only pointed out that giving the Georgian government another chance for “Frontera” means that the government is ready for open communication with business.

US Ambassador - I welcome yesterday's offer and statement of the Government of Georgia as a good sign that the communication channel with business is open. Disputes occur. It is important for companies to sit down with the government and resolve disputes.

Posted by DomFok on the 28th July :-

Zaza (8min interview)
Headline- Frontera Addresses Government - 'Stop Deliberately Misleading and Harmful Propaganda'

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=FYVS1drEQAo

FRONTERA AGREES TO MAKE THE DECISION OF THE ARBITRAL TRIBUNAL PUBLIC
Frontera agrees to make public the decision of the arbitral tribunal. Zaza Mamulaishvili, the President of the Energy Company, made a statement about it on the air of the program "Case Course". He said that the publication of this document will make it clear to the public what the verdict of the International Court of Arbitration actually was. At the same time, Mamulaishvili says that both the government and the State Oil and Gas Agency are deliberately spreading false information about them.

"We, of course, are not and have never been against announcing the arbitration decision. Even from this broadcast I can call on the representatives of the state that you want today, you want tomorrow, to meet together and publicly announce the decision of the international arbitration. This will be very good as it is not necessary for a person to be a lawyer in order for him to understand the content of this decision.

We are not against the publication of this decision, but it should be done after following the relevant legal procedures. What do I mean by that? - A decision that contains a lot of technical, financial, commercial and personal information that may not be desirable to disclose. "We will legally agree to this with all parties and this process will probably take another 10 days or 2 weeks, and as soon as we get the consent, then we can officially confirm in writing to the state that we also agree to make it public," Zaza Mamulaishvili told
According to a statement released by Frontera today, they received a notification from the government a few days ago that the state plans to suspend the contract with them again.

The tribunal of the International Court of Arbitration in The Hague ruled on April 17 in an ongoing dispute between Frontera, the Oil and Gas Agency, and the Oil and Gas Corporation. The dispute has been going on in court for several years and within it the state-owned company Frontera has been arguing for a breach of license requirements.

The arbitral tribunal upheld the GOGC's appeal, ordering the transfer of 99% of Frontera's license to the state, which Frontera even enforced.

https://bm.ge/ka/article/frontera-tanaxmaa--saarbitrajo-sasamartlos-gadawyvetileba-gasajarovdes/61211

Posted by Moleinahole on the 28th July :-

Pjohn I have indeed in the past supported him and the company 100% and very strongly but right now he has decided to go this totally alone without consulting at all with shareholders. Last successful contact I had was late aug 2019 when trying to broke contact with the FSHG. From that date on events have escalated with the company being pulled apart by the two pieces of litigation.
My support is not totally blind and unconditional though. I fundamentally disagree with the course being taken using litigation both involving the GG and Outrider. You won't find any posts where I think they were a good idea from day 1. As we are suspended and have no company meetings and no right to call one we are all stuck.
If he actually responded to the very reasonable approaches he has had from shareholders my tone today would be different. He has not and continues to go it alone without any accountability to shareholders in prosecuting this course of action. I may be many things but I am a strong believer in minority shareholder rights in all companies I invest in and find it impossible to defend what I am currently seeing particularly as given the gravity of the situation we are having to follow events from court documents and now translated media interviews. Maybe I'll stop posting for a while and watch it all unfold.

Posted by EkXoc on the 28th July :-

With all due respect Mole I do think you need to unhitch the idea what this investment is like any other and therefore would follow the rules and conventions of a 'normal' investmnet in a 'normal' company. OK we have no dialogue what so ever directly with the company but I am sure the BOD know that pretty much all the info that can be diseminated is being done so via the media.. how many companies have you invested in feature in the media ie web/tv/ and newpaper almost daily?! How mnay companies are name dropped by US ambassadors and US secretary of State on a weekly basis. Yes frustating, but this went way beyond 'normal' long ago. I feel I can't judge the BOD actions because we don't have enough information however I do know for a FACT that FRR have not been treated fairly and have been under very dishonest attack for YEARS and somehow have not cracked so someone is doing something right. We are in the lap of the Gods now, the scientific approach is all very well but there are a number of times in life when it just isn't enough and you have to fall back on faith.