Oil company makes listing history

Taking advantage of the oil fever currently sweeping the country, Canadian Oil and Gas exploration company, Eco Atlantic this week became the first oil company to list on the Namibian Stock Exchange.
Eco Atlantic, which first listed on the Toronto Venture Exchange in November 2011 said on Wednesday that a dual listing on the Namibian Stock Exchange (NSX) will enable it to gain access to the local and South Africa’s large savings pool. The listing will also enable the general public in both countries to take part in the new and promising oil and gas exploration sector in the region.
Gil Holzman, president and CEO of Eco Atlantic said: “The NSX listing provides our shareholders and other stakeholders exposure to Namibian and South African investments and finance. Being publicly traded provides locals.. a wonderful opportunity to participate in new developments of the oil and gas sector……”
He added: “ I take a special pride in us being the first international oil and gas company to be ever listed on the NSX. The listing will provide our current Namibian team with better visibility and attraction of the market and with the success and growth of Eco Atlantic, we will have the opportunity to attract new employees with these same incentives.”
Through its wholly-owned Namibian subsidiary, Eco Namibia, Eco Atlantic holds five petroleum licenses covering a total of 55 000 square kilometers making it one of the largest acreage holder in the country.
Last month, the company announced a Best Estimate of 7.79 Billion barrels of prospective oil. The company also recently entered into a farm out agreement with another exploration and production company, Azimutha. Under the agreement, Azimuth will earn a 20% working interest in each of Eco Atlantic’s offshore Namibia licenses, namely the Cooper License (Block 2012A), the Sharon License (Blocks 2213A & 2213B), and the Guy License (Blocks 2111B & 2211A) in return for funding 40% of the cost of 3D seismic surveys covering 2500 sq km across all three licenses. The acquisition is expected to cost in excess of $25 million.
The assignment of a 20% working interest in the licenses to Azimuth is subject to the approval of Namibia’s Ministry of Mines and Energy. As a result of this transaction, Eco Namibia’s interest will be 70%, Azimuth will earn a 20% interest, while local partner. NAMCOR will retain its 10% carried interest.