Gran Tierra Energy Announces the Successful Closing of Petrolifera Acquisition
CALGARY, March 18 /CNW/ --
Acquisition Adds Substantial Underdeveloped Assets to Portfolio in
Colombia, Peru and Argentina
CALGARY, March 18 /CNW/ - Gran Tierra Energy Inc. (NYSE AMEX: GTE; TSX: GTE) ('Gran Tierra Energy'), a company focused on oil and gas exploration and production in South
America, is pleased to announce the successful completion of its
acquisition of all the issued and outstanding common shares and
warrants of Petrolifera Petroleum Limited ('Petrolifera') by way of statutory plan of arrangement (the 'Arrangement'). Under the Arrangement, Petrolifera shareholders received, for each
Petrolifera share held, 0.1241 of a share of Gran Tierra Energy common
stock, and Petrolifera warrant holders received, for each Petrolifera
warrant held, 0.1241 of a warrant to purchase a share of Gran Tierra
Energy common stock at an exercise price of $9.67 per share. The Gran
Tierra Energy warrants expire on August 28, 2011.
The Arrangement was approved at a special meeting of Petrolifera
shareholders on March 17, 2011 and by the Court of Queen's Bench of
Alberta on March 18, 2011. Approximately 72% of the Petrolifera
shareholders voted, with over 99% of the votes cast by Petrolifera
shareholders voting in favor of the Arrangement. Gran Tierra Energy
has acquired all the issued and outstanding Petrolifera shares and
warrants through the issuance of approximately 18.2 million Gran Tierra
Energy shares and approximately 4.1 million Gran Tierra Energy
warrants.
'The successful closing of this transaction represents a milestone for
Gran Tierra Energy as we have now added substantially to our asset base
in Colombia, Peru and Argentina,' said Dana Coffield, President and
Chief Executive Officer of Gran Tierra Energy. 'The acquisition adds
undeveloped oil and gas reserve potential in Colombia, exploration
opportunities in Colombia and Peru and additional oil production and
reserves in a rising oil price environment in Argentina. Gran Tierra
Energy has retained its strong balance sheet and cash position to
further develop the assets acquired in this transaction.'
Petrolifera shares and warrants are expected to be de-listed from the
Toronto Stock Exchange ('TSX') in due course when the TSX confirms receipt of all necessary
documents in connection with the closing of the Arrangement and related
matters.
Gran Tierra Energy expects to announce a revised 2011 work program and
budget shortly once final internal approvals are obtained.
About Gran Tierra Energy Inc.
Gran Tierra Energy Inc. is an international oil and gas exploration and
production company, headquartered in Calgary, Canada, incorporated in
the United States, trading on the NYSE Amex (GTE) and the Toronto Stock
Exchange (GTE), and operating in South America. Gran Tierra Energy
holds interests in producing and prospective properties in Argentina,
Colombia, Peru and, subject to regulatory approval, Brazil. Gran Tierra
Energy has a strategy that focuses on establishing a portfolio of
producing properties, plus production enhancement and exploration
opportunities to provide a base for future growth.
Gran Tierra Energy's Securities and Exchange Commission filings are
available on a web site maintained by the Securities and Exchange
Commission at http://www.sec.gov and on SEDAR at http://www.sedar.com.
Forward Looking Statements:
This news release contains certain forward-looking information and
forward-looking statements (collectively, 'forward-looking statements')
under the meaning of applicable securities laws, including Canadian
Securities Administrators' National Instrument 51-102 - Continuous
Disclosure Obligations and the United States Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The use of the words 'expect',
'anticipate', 'may' and 'will' and similar terms identify these
forward-looking statements. In particular, but without limiting the
foregoing, this news release contains forward-looking statements
regarding the de-listing of the Petrolifera shares and warrants from
the TSX and the announcement of a revised 2011 work program and budget.
The forward-looking statements contained in this news release reflect
several material factors and expectations and assumptions of Gran
Tierra Energy which Gran Tierra Energy believes are reasonable at this
time but no assurance can be given that these factors, expectations and
assumptions will prove to be correct.
The forward-looking statements contained in this news release are
subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause
actual results or outcomes to differ materially from those contemplated
by the forward-looking statements, including, among others, that in the
event that Gran Tierra Energy is unable to meet the TSX requirements
for de-listing in the timeframe currently anticipated, the de-listing
of the Petrolifera common shares and warrants may be delayed; and in
the event that Gran Tierra Energy is unable to assess the information
required to revise the 2011 work program and budget within the
currently anticipated timeframe, the announcement of a revised 2011
work program and budget may be delayed indefinitely. The
forward-looking statements contained herein are expressly qualified in
their entirety by this cautionary statement. The forward-looking
statements included in this press release are made as of the date of
this press release and Gran Tierra Energy disclaims any intention or
obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether
as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as
expressly required by applicable securities legislation.
To view this news release in HTML formatting, please use the following URL: http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/March2011/18/c4460.html
For investor and media inquiries please contact:
Jason Crumley
Director, Investor Relations
403-265-3221
info@grantierra.com.
