Petroleum Africa
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Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Issa Mohamud Farah, the General Director of the Puntland Petroleum and Mineral Agency
in a June 8 statement, refuted that Range Resources CEO Peter Landau had implied that Africa Oil Corp (AOC) had violated the terms of its Production Sharing Agreements (PSAs) and Contracts of Work (CoW), during a recent meeting with the Agency.
AOC and Range Resources jointly hold exploration interests in the Puntland.
Farah did confirm however that the Agency is reviewing current PSAs with the two companies that share access to large tracts of exploration acreage within the Puntland.
Farah said that the new administration accepts in principle the agreements with the two companies and that the Agency he oversees has inherited the responsibilities of the previous administration’s Ministry of Petroleum and Minerals. In accordance with the current Government’s
policy of transparency and openness in governance, the Agency is holding meetings with the two independent oil companies.
The meetings are part of the Agency’s efforts to confirm whether or not that both companies have fulfilled their legal and fiscal obligations within the PSA.
Early last week the Agency and Ministers from the Puntland Government held its first meeting with Peter Landau, the CEO of Range Resources. The discussion was about Range’s past and current operations as well as its future plans in Puntland. The meeting was cordial and productive for all attendees Farah said. The Agency is also planning to meet with executives from AOC in the very near future.
The outcome of this review will be released formally by the Government when it is complete. Farah says an open and transparent review of all past and future operations is an important step being undertaken in the interests of the people of Puntland, the companies and their shareholders, in particular those in Australia and Canada.
Farah also said that the Agency refutes recent media reports that at the meetings Peter Landau said that AOC has “violated the PSA.” The Agency categorically states that if and when any company “breaches” or “violates” any part of the agreement it is the responsibility of the Agency
and its legal advisers to bring this breach to the attention directly and privately of the
concerned parties including in the first instance the Government of Puntland. Any
information suggesting that “a company breached or violated its legal obligations” should
be viewed with caution unless specifically stated by the Agency.
Until such time as the current reviews are complete we urge all media outlets to refrain
from baseless and inflammatory statements that undermine the transparent and open
process of review being undertaken by this administration on behalf of the Puntland
people.
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