I am pleased to update the ERHC Energy family on the company’s recent progress.
We are happy that the London Court of International Arbitration has resolved the distribution of interests on Joint Development Zone (JDZ) Block 4 so that we and our consortium partner can focus entirely on starting drilling in JDZ Block 4 as quickly as possible. The issue related to a nine percent portion of Block 4 that was recovered from another consortium partner that had failed to meet certain obligations. The arbitration process was useful in clarifying the terms of our Participation Agreement with Addax. As a result of the arbitration, ERHC now has a 19.5 percent interest in JDZ Block 4 (up from 17.7 percent). Addax Petroleum will continue to carry the costs associated with ERHC’s total interests in the Block. Throughout the process, ERHC and Addax Petroleum maintained their close working relationship.
Work continues on refurbishing the deepwater drillship Aban Abraham, which has been contracted by our technical partners Addax and Sinopec Corp. to commence drilling operations in the JDZ. We have posted a number of photographs of the ship on our Web site.
Addax continues its efforts to mitigate delays in the delivery of Aban Abraham by looking for a rig of opportunity. Addax is still pointing to the possibility that drilling in JDZ Block 4 will commence in due course. I continue to caution that there are many contingencies that affect operations of this nature and guidance for when exploratory drilling may commence could change. We will look to the operators of each of the Blocks to make the relevant announcements.
Also related to the JDZ, we understand that there have been reports on the status of our interests in Blocks 5 and 6. Our legal entitlement to those rights is recognized by international treaty and enshrined in comprehensive legal agreements. We remain committed to exploiting those rights. The Company is, however, working to understand the recently expressed concerns of representatives of the Democratic Republic of Sao Tome & Principe.
Meanwhile, ERHC is moving forward with its growth strategy. We are looking at the opportunities for listing or acquiring a subsidiary listed on an appropriate Exchange such as the Alternative Investments Market of the London Stock Exchange. The move will provide the means, in terms of capital and structure, for growth of ERHC’s asset portfolio.
We consider this growth strategy essential to diversify and mitigate the risks associated with being entirely tied to just one set of core assets in Gulf of Guinea. We have been discussing these initiatives with potential investors through our presentations at the RedChip Small Cap Investors Conference in San Francisco, the Growth Company Investors Show in London, the Sub Saharan Africa Oil & Gas Conference in Houston. We also participated at the Nortia Capital Partners’ Equities Conference by the Beach in Atlantic City. For those who have not been able to witness any of the presentations, a replay of the RedChip presentation is available online.
The events gave us an opportunity to spread the word about ERHC’s past and present, and its plans for the future. They also enabled us to engage personally with the investment community, to listen to questions and concerns, and to describe our vision for ERHC in the years to come. Our goal is to forge lasting and trusting relationships with investment bankers, fund managers, institutional investors, research analysts and the investment community as a whole. The feedback has been very positive and we are preparing to present at the 2008 Global Investment Symposium in Dubai, which runs October 26-28, 2008. It will of course take time to spread the message as far and as wide as we want but we have made it a priority to continue to tell ERHC’s story to the larger investment community.
Finally, work is well underway on ERHC’s third quarter financial report for the period that ended June 30th. We shall hold an Investor Conference Call on August 12, 2008 at 9:00 a.m. Eastern Time (8:00 a.m. Central Time). To participate, please dial 877-890-0968 (domestic) or 706-902-1710 (international) five to ten minutes before the call begins and reference the pass code 57619351.
A simultaneous live Webcast of the call will be available over the Internet and will be accessible by going to www.livemeeting.com/cc/erhcenergy/join and entering the Meeting ID: 7QC7M4 and Entry Code: 8JR#pbw.
A replay of the call will be available from Tuesday, August 12, 2008 at 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time through August 19, 2008 by dialing 800-642-1687 (domestic) or 706-645-9291 (international) and providing the following replay code: 57619351. In addition, the Webcast will be available for replay until September 12, 2008 by going to www.livemeeting.com/cc/erhcenergy/join and entering the Meeting ID: 7QC7M4 and Entry Code: 8JR#pbw.
ERHC Energy remains focused on enhancing value for the benefit of its shareholders. We continue to count on your trust and support.
Sincerely,
Peter Ntephe
Chief Operating Officer
This document contains statements concerning ERHC Energy Inc.’s future operating milestones, future drilling operations, the planned exploration and appraisal program, future prospects, future investment opportunities and financing plans, future shareholders’ meetings, response to the Senate Subcommittee investigation, developments in the SEC investigation of the Company and related proceedings, as well as other matters that are not historical facts or information. Such statements are inherently subject to a variety of risks, assumptions and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated, projected, expressed or implied. A discussion of the risk factors that could impact these areas and the Company’s overall business and financial performance can be found in the Company’s reports and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. These factors include, among others, those relating to the Company’s ability to exploit its commercial interests in the JDZ and the exclusive territorial waters of Sao Tome and Principe, general economic and business conditions, changes in foreign and domestic oil and gas exploration and production activity, competition, changes in foreign, political, social and economic conditions, regulatory initiatives and compliance with governmental regulations and various other matters, many of which are beyond the Company’s control. Given these concerns, investors and analysts should not place undue reliance on these statements. Each of the above statements speaks only as of the date of this document. The Company expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statement to reflect any change in the Company’s expectations with regard thereto or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any of the above statements is based.