RE: TS6 Jul 2015 13:51
Azonto’s operations offshore West Africa.
Azonto Petroleum, a London-based oil and gas company focused on West Africa, has appointed Glenn Whiddon, who stepped down from the board in 2012, as Non-Executive Director.
The company says that Whiddon, formerly a Non-Executive Director and Executive Chairman of the company, stepped down from the Board in March 2012 to pursue other interests. He is based in Australia, where the company has a corporate office in Perth.
Chairman of the Board, Andrew Sinclair said: “We are pleased to welcome back Glenn onto the Board. He is a significant shareholder of the Company and already has a good understanding of the Company from his previous involvement. We look forward to benefitting from his experience as we move forward.”
According to Azonto’s press release, Whiddon was formerly Executive Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President of Grove Energy Limited, a European and Mediterranean oil and gas company that was acquired by Stratic Energy Limited for C$150 million ($120.8 million).
Broker RFC Ambrian said Azonto Petroleum (ASX:APY, LON:AZO) (AZO)
Broker RFC Ambrian said it remains confident Azonto will proceed to Gazelle project sanction in 2015, given that Vioco has been consistently reassured of the political importance ascribed to the project by the authorities in Côte d’Ivoire.
“We believe that the main near-term stock catalyst will be news on the development of the Gazelle gas/condensate field ,” the broker said, as it reiterated its ‘speculative buy’ rating on the stock.
SP Angel
We believe that his appointment is a positive first step in the Company’s rehabilitation, and in the process of unlocking the value inherent within its asset base.
While Whiddon’s appointment is in a non-exec capacity, we believe that the more time that the Company can call upon, the better its outlook will be, and if Andrew Sinclair can be convinced to swap his non-executive role for an executive one, and Andy Bartlett can be convinced to stay, then Azonto’s future would start to look very bright indeed.
The appointment of Glenn Whiddon is a significant step as it places more control in the hands of the shareholders and of a group that has a demonstrated track record in generating value.
What would really transform the Company would be the management “Trinity” of Messers Bartlett, Sinclair and Whiddon, but in the absence of Bartlett the dynamic duo of Sinclair and Whiddon is a pretty close second. As such, we believe that positive things should now start to happen, and while there is a long way to go before value can be restored, this is a timely first step.
CEO.
“As we indicate in our corporate presentation and as also highlighted in external research available on our website, the value of Azonto’s interest in Gazelle is significantly in excess of our current market capitalization.,the economics remain fully ro