Sharon Energy Ltd. announces results for the year ended March 31, 2009
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CALGARY, June 29 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ - Sharon Energy Ltd. (TSX-V: SHY)
("Sharon") announces that is has filed its 2009 MD&A, Financial Statements,
and Reserves Data Report.
Sharon's revenue and cash flow results for the year ended March 31, 2009, were
higher than those of the prior year as strong oil and natural gas prices
combined with flush production from new wells during the spring and summer
quarters (Q1 and Q2). Unfortunately, declines in production rates during the
second half of the fiscal year combined with a considerable drop in oil and
natural gas prices offset most of the gains from the first half.
Financial
Revenue for the year totalled $3.7 million compared with $2.8 million for the
prior year. Cash flow from operations for the year totalled $2.1 million or
$0.03 per share compared with $1.2 million or $0.02 per share for the prior
year. Sharon had a loss of $3.6 million versus a loss of $757,000 in the prior
year primarily due to an impairment of the carrying value of the Company's oil
and gas assets of $1.6 million in 2009 compared with an impairment of $379,000
in the prior year.
Capital expenditures during the 2009 fiscal year totalled $3.4 million
compared with $6.0 million for the prior year. Capital expenditures were
financed from cash flow and proceeds from property dispositions.
Sharon exited the year with working capital of $310,000 versus working capital
of $412,000 at the beginning of the year.
All dollar figures are United States dollars.
Exploration and Development
Unites States
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In the U.S., Sharon has acquired approximately 8,500 gross acres (3,621
net acres) in the Eagleford fractured shale play. Sharon's acreage is on trend
with a large development program operated by Apache Corporation. However, the
Company is actively looking to sell or farmout this project as individual well
costs may be significant.
Canada
------
In Canada, Sharon has acquired 9,611 acres (2,816 net acres) in Alberta and
Saskatchewan. The Alberta lands were acquired to expand existing holdings at
Big Bend. Sharon's primary Canadian exploration focus is in Saskatchewan where
the Company now has acreage on prospective Viking, Shaunavon and Bird Bear oil
plays.
Production
For the year ended March 31, 2009, production increased 17% to 254 BOEd
compared with 217 BOEd for the prior year. New fields added to production
during the year from Canada at Leahurst, Carstairs and Big Bend and in the
United States at NW Speaks combined to offset production rate declines at the
Hound Dog field in Lavaca County, Texas, and the Allen Ranch field in Colorado
County, Texas.
Reserves and Reserve Values
The independent engineering evaluation of Sharon's properties assigned proved
reserves before royalties of 256.8 MBOE and total reserves before royalties of
1,097.5 MBOE at March 31, 2009. These reserve estimates result in a before tax
present value of estimated future net revenues, discounted at 10%, of $13.6
million CDN. There is no assurance that this represents the fair value of the
assets.
Business Outlook
A weak natural gas pricing environment has led to a sharp reduction in the
number of rigs drilling for natural gas over the last six months. The drop of
rig activity in Canada and the U.S. should decrease domestic supply as rates
from producing wells decline without new well production replacing the
declines. However, even though natural gas prices have shown signs of
strengthening recently, there is still considerable uncertainty as to when
prices will again rise to above $7.00 Mcf. Because of the uncertainty in the
gas market and the underlying economy Sharon expects that natural gas prices
will stay in the range of $4.00 to $6.00 per Mcf for the remainder of 2009.
Sharon plans to match capital spending to operating cashflows and has halted
the majority of new projects until gas prices improve over current levels.
Sharon's future exploration program will focus on a number of shallower
prospects in Texas that can be managed within the Company's capital budget.
However, Sharon is also considering various alternatives to its normal
operations such as the selling of assets, a reduction of overhead costs, and
other corporate transactions to optimize shareholder value.
Corporate Summary
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Years Ended
($ Thousands, except per share amounts) March 31
(U.S. Dollars) ------------------------
2009 2008
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Financial
Total revenue $ 3,733 $ 2,835
Cash flow from operations $ 2,075 $ 1,174
per share, basic and diluted $ 0.03 $ 0.02
Loss for the period $ (3,626) $ (757)
per share, basic and diluted $ (0.05) $ (0.01)
Property, plant and equipment
Capital additions $ 3,428 $ 5,984
Dispositions $ 1,412 $ 330
Working capital $ 310 $ 412
Total assets $ 14,679 $ 21,902
Total shares outstanding, at period end 74,086 75,394
Operations
Production
Gas (MMcfd) 1.3 1.2
Oil (Bopd) 32 25
BOEd (6 Mcf equals 1 Bbl) 254 217
Product Prices
Gas ($/Mcf) $ 8.01 $ 6.78
Oil ($/Bbl) $ 85.03 $ 67.19
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Reserves (proved plus probable)
Gas (Mmcf) 6,241 11,183
Oil (MBbl) 57 145
BOE (MBbls) 1,097 2,009
Present value, before tax ($ CDN MM at 10%) $ 13.6 $ 35.7
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BOE Presentation - the term barrels of oil equivalent (BOE) may be
misleading, particularly if used in isolation. A BOE conversion ratio
of 6 Mcf: 1Bbl is based on an energy equivalency conversion method
primarily applicable at the burner tip and does not represent a value
equivalency at the wellhead. All BOE conversions in this report are
derived by converting gas to oil in the ratio of six Mcf of gas to
one Bbl of oil.
Financial Reporting - all numbers are reported in U.S. dollars.
Sharon is an oil and gas exploration and production company based in Calgary,
Alberta. Sharon's current focus is on shallow gas developments in southern
Alberta, natural gas exploration in central and southern Alberta and deep gas
exploration in Texas.
TSX-V: SHY
ADVISORY: Certain information regarding the Company in this News Release
including management's assessment of future plans and operations, the use of
proceeds from the offering and the anticipated closing date of the offering,
may constitute forward-looking statements under applicable securities laws and
necessarily involve risks including, without limitation, risks associated with
oil and gas exploration, development, exploitation, production, marketing and
transportation, loss of markets, volatility of commodity prices, currency
fluctuations, imprecision of reserve estimates, environmental risks,
competition from other producers, inability to retain drilling rigs and other
services, capital expenditure costs, including drilling, completion and
facilities costs, unexpected decline rates in wells, wells not performing as
expected, incorrect assessment of the value of acquisitions, failure to
realize the anticipated benefits of acquisitions, delays resulting from or
inability to obtain required regulatory approvals and ability to access
sufficient capital from internal and external sources. As a consequence,
actual results may differ materially from those anticipated in the
forward-looking statements. Readers are cautioned that the foregoing list of
factors is not exhausted. Additional information on these and other factors
that could effect the Company's operations and financial results are included
in reports on file with Canadian securities regulatory authorities and may be
accessed through the SEDAR website (www.sedar.com) and at the Company's
website (www.sharonenergy.com). Furthermore, the forward-looking statements
contained in this news release are made as at the date of this news release
and the Company does not undertake any obligation to update publicly or to
revise any of the included forward-looking statements, whether as a result of
new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required by
applicable securities laws.
Where amounts are expressed on a barrel of oil equivalent (boe) basis, natural
gas volumes have been converted to barrels of oil at six thousand cubic feet
(mcf) per barrel (bbl). Boe figures may be misleading, particularly if used in
isolation. A boe conversion of six thousand cubic feet per barrel is based on
an energy equivalency conversion method primarily applicable at the burner tip
and does not represent a value equivalency at the wel head. References to oil
in this discussion include crude oil and natural gas liquids (NGLs).
THE TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE DOES NOT ACCEPT RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ADEQUACY
OR ACCURACY OF THIS RELEASE.
SOURCE Sharon Energy Ltd.
H.C. (Kip) Ferguson, III, President, Houston, Texas, SHARON ENERGY LTD.,
Telephone: (713) 789-5395, Fax: (713) 789-8454; Robert W. Lamond, Chairman,
Calgary, Alberta, SHARON ENERGY LTD., Telephone: (403) 269-9889, Fax: (403)
269-9890
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