15 Jan 2019 07:00
15 January 2019
Sirius Petroleum Plc
("Sirius" or "the Company")
£5m Convertible Note Facility
Sirius Petroleum (AIM: SRSP), the Nigeria focused oil and gas development and production company, is pleased to announce that it has agreed binding terms with European High Growth Opportunities Securitization Fund ("the Fund"), managed by the Alpha Blue Ocean Group, in relation to the issue of convertible notes ("Convertible Notes") raising initially £1.75m (gross) (up to a maximum of £5m in total under the agreement) in new funds for the Company which can be utilised to support the Company's ongoing requirements for work regarding existing and potential asset targets.
Subsequent use of the funding will be applied in specific projects only where marginal cost overruns are encountered on future development projects.
The Convertible Notes are being issued at a 5% discount but are interest free and can be issued and subscribed in sequential tranches. The Company will draw the first tranche of £1.75m immediately. Two subsequent tranches of £0.75m and £0.5m may be drawn down only after grant of authority by Sirius in General Meeting to issue shares under all subsequent tranches ("GM Authority") and then only after a minimum period of 70 trading days from the date of the first drawdown.
It is anticipated that the remainder of the facility will only be utilised as a potential cost overrun facility for future development projects. In this event, and under the terms of the Convertible Notes the Company may draw up to four subsequent tranches of £0.5m each, starting from the end of a 25 trading days' period from the third drawdown Each drawdown is subject to conditions customary for this type of funding. It is specified that the Fund shall have the right to request the drawdown of up to two subsequent tranches, subject to the GM Authority having been granted.
The Convertible Notes can convert into ordinary shares of the Company at 95% of the lowest closing VWAP within fifteen trading days immediately preceding the delivery of the relevant conversion notice by the investor.
Under the terms of the transaction, the Company will issue 5-year warrants whose proceeds would represent 30% of the principal amount drawn under each tranche, exercisable at 110% of the average of the closing VWAPs over the fifteen trading days immediately preceding the request to issue a new tranche, except the warrants issued with the first tranche of Convertible Notes whose exercise price shall be equal to 0.64 pence per warrant.
Bobo Kuti, CEO of Sirius, said:
"The Convertible Notes provide us with a flexible funding, giving us operational headroom as we continue to look at a number of potential assets and projects which meet the investment criteria for our offshore development strategy."
Pierre Vannineuse, Founder and CEO of Alpha Blue Ocean Advisors Ltd, said:
"We are pleased to collaborate with Sirius Petroleum by providing this flexible commitment which will help the company focus on growing its assets and delivering value to its shareholders. Through the prism of my experience at TOTAL & Engie (ex GDF-Suez) I see a great potential in Sirius' assets."
The information contained within this announcement is deemed by the Company to constitute inside information as stipulated under the Market Abuse Regulations (EU) No. 596/2014 ("MAR"). Upon the publication of this announcement via Regulatory Information Service ("RIS"), this inside information is now considered to be in the public domain.
Enquiries: |
|
Sirius Petroleum plc Bobo Kuti, CEO Mark Henderson, CFO
| T: 020 3740 7460 |
Cantor Fitzgerald Europe Limited (Nomad and Broker) David Porter/Nick Tulloch
| T: 020 7894 7000 |
Gable Communications Limited John Bick | T: 020 7193 7463 srsp@gablecommunications.com |
About Alpha Blue Ocean
Alpha Blue Ocean, founded by Pierre Vannineuse, is responsible for a family of investments and operates across multiple jurisdictions and focuses on financing innovative technologies while retaining a passive role in the management of its portfolio companies. Alpha Blue Ocean specialises in providing flexible and innovative non-invasive loans and equity-financing to listed companies globally and in health, energy, mining and technology. Alpha Blue Ocean's head office is based in London, United Kingdom.