GEEC.L Regulatory News (GEEC)

8 Feb 2006 15:33

Great Eastern Energy Corp Ltd08 February 2006 08 February 2006 GREAT EASTERN ENERGY CORPORATION LTD ("Great Eastern Energy" or "the Company") Board Appointment Great Eastern Energy Corporation Ltd, an AIM-listed company (GEEC:LN)incorporated to explore, develop, distribute and market Coal Bed Methane ("CBM")in India, announces the appointment of Mr. Haigreve Khaitan, aged 35, as anon-executive director of the Company on 06 February 2006. Save for the declarations below, there are no updated disclosures to be made inrespect of the appointment of Mr. Haigreve Khaitan under rule 17 of the AIMrules. In the past five years, Mr. Khaitan has been a director of the companies listedbelow in table 1. Also listed is the date on which he ceased to be a director ofthose companies. Table 2 lists the companies of which Mr. Khaitan is currently a director orpartner. Table 1. No. Name of the Company Date of cessation 1. ABC Consolidated Pvt. Ltd 12.4.2001 2. Hiltop Holdings India Ltd 10.7.2001 3. Jubilee Investments & Industries Ltd 10.7.2001 4. Polylink Polymers (India) Ltd 21.9.2001 5. Indiaart.com Private Ltd. 6.02.2002 6. Rasoi Limited 7.11.2002 7. Kilburn Chemicals Limited 28.11.2002 8. Aekta Limited 20.06.2003 9. Bengal Tea & Fabrics Ltd. 29.07.2003 10. Ritssfibra Pte Ltd. 02.10.2003 11. Usha Martin Infotech Limited 04.11.2003 12. RPG Cellular Services Limited 19.12.2003 13. Lanco Industries Limited 05.04.2004 14. J L Morison (India) Ltd 31.08.2004 15. RPG Cables Limited 21.09.2004 16. India Foils Limited 30.01.2005 17. Khaitan Consultants Limited 05.12.2005 18. Ritspin Synthetics Limited 04.02.2006 Table 2. No. Name of the Company Position 1. AVTEC Limited Director 2. BTS Investment Advisors Pvt. Limited Director 3. Cheviot Company Limited Director 4. Ceat Limited Director 5. Dhunseri Tea & Industries Limited Director 6. Dormeuil-Birla VXL Limited Director 7. Gujarat Borosil Limited Director 8. Harrison Malayalam Limited Director 9. Hindustan Composites Limited Director 10. International Conveyors Limited Director 11. Khaitan Consultants Limited Director 12. NeoWorth Private Limited Director 13. Rama Newsprint & Papers Limited Director 14. Sterlite Optical Technologies Limited Director 15. Vinar Systems Private Limited Director 16. Xpro India Limited Director 17. Euroinfo Systems Private Limited Director 18. National Engineering Industries Limited Director 19. Khaitan & Co. Partner Further information: Great Eastern Energy Company Ltd (00 91 124 258 0465)Yogendra Modi - Executive Chairman and Joint Managing DirectorPrashant Modi - Executive Joint Managing Director Arden Partners Limited (020 7398 1632)Richard Day Citigate Dewe Rogerson (020 7638 9571)Media enquiries: Martin Jackson/George CazenoveAnalyst enquiries: Nina Soon Great Eastern Energy placed 18.8m Global Depository Receipts ("GDRs") withinstitutional investors and listed on AIM in December, 2006. The notional market capitalisation of Great Eastern as of 08 February 2006 is£155.5 million. Notes to Editors Great Eastern Energy Corporation Ltd ("Great Eastern") is a public limitedcompany incorporated in India in 1992 to explore, develop, distribute and marketCoal Bed Methane (CBM) in India. The organization, headed by Mr. Y.K. Modi, isexploring & developing production wells for Coal Bed Methane in the Raniganjcoalfields, West Bengal. A pioneering initiative and a first-of-its-kind inIndia, the process would lead to demethanation of coal beds and the avoidance ofharmful methane emissions into the atmosphere - thus turning an otherwiseenvironmental hazard into a high-potential energy resource. The Company has alicence to explore for Coal Bed Methane in the 210 sq km block (approximately52,000 acres) in the Raniganj Coalfields of the Damodar Valley, near Asansol,West Bengal. It is located approximately 200 km north-west of Kolkata and isconnected by a national highway & mainline railways. The estimated gas in place in the block, as per Schlumberger's 2005 report, is1.386 TCF and the total of proved, probable and possible reserve is 817 BCF.Three pilot wells have been drilled, cased, cemented, perforated and fracturedand currently dewatering is under progress. Test sale of CBM from these threepilot wells is expected to commence shortly. The Company commenced commercialdrilling of CBM wells on 14th January 2006 and has outsourced the entireactivity of commercial drilling, wire line logging & perforation services,cementing & fracturing operations of its commercial CBM wells to three leadingcompanies namely Mitchell Drilling International Pty Ltd. (Australia), HLS AsiaLimited (a collaboration company of Halliburton Energy Services Inc., USA), andBJ Services Company Middle East Limited (a subsidiary of BJ Services Company,USA), who have vast experience in CBM projects and technology. With this, GreatEastern becomes the first Indian company to commence commercial drilling of CBMwells in India. The project plan involves drilling of 100 wells over anestimated four year period in the first phase at an estimated capital outlay of$125 million. The Company may drill more wells (possibly another 200) in thenext phases to extract further CBM reserves in the block as estimated bySchlumberger. In December 2005, the Company placed 18,803,504 Global Depositary Receipts ("GDRs") with institutional investors and joined the Alternative Investment Market(AIM) of London Stock Exchange, becoming the first Indian Company to have itsprimary listing on AIM. Each GDR represents 5 ordinary shares of INR 1 each ata placing price of 101 pence (Rs. 79) per GDR. The entire paid up capital ofthe Company comprises of 544,619,499 shares, which equates to 108,923,899 GDRs.Therefore, the company's notional market capitalisation on 07 February 2006 is£154 million. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange