ENERGY TRUSTS / Freehold Distribution
FREEHOLD ANNOUNCES MONTHLY DISTRIBUTION AND UPDATES ACTIVITY
CALGARY, June 19 /CNW/ - Freehold Royalty Trust declared a cash
distribution for the month of June 1998 in the amount of five and three
quarters cents ($0.0575). The payment will be made on July 15, 1998 to
Unitholders of record on June 30, 1998. The Trust moved from quarterly to
monthly distributions in April of this year.
Working Interest Properties
At the Berrymoor, Alberta light oil property which was acquired in 1997,
Freehold participated in the recompletions of two wells and the drilling of
three wells (average ownership of approximately 20%). The recompletions,
along with one of the new wells now on production, has increased Freehold's
share of estimated production from approximately 20 to 80 barrels of oil
equivalent per day.
Activity on Royalty Interest Lands Remains Strong
Drilling activity levels are steady on lands where the Trust receives a
royalty percentage of the production. As at the end of May this year, lessees
had drilled a total of 33 wells (91% success rate) on Freehold's royalty
lands, as compared to 40 wells at the same time last year. The number of
natural gas wells drilled this year has almost doubled compared to last year.
The 33 wells drilled to-date do not include unitized wells or wells drilled on
the Swift Current, Saskatchewan lands acquired last year. As well, an
additional 34 wells are licenced to be drilled.
The effect of heavy oil shut-ins on Freehold's royalty lands has been
minimal due to the diverse holdings of the royalties. Approximately 200
barrels of oil equivalent per day (6%) of the Trust's royalty production was
shut-in during the second quarter. It is anticipated that shut-in wells will
resume production once oil prices improve.
Freehold Royalty Trust is a closed-end investment trust, which receives
and distributes royalty income from a diversified asset base of high quality
oil and gas properties. The Trust has 26.5 million Trust units outstanding
and trades on the Toronto and Montreal stock exchanges under the symbol
''FRU.UN''.
%SEDAR: 00002748E
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For further information: Joe Holowisky, Vice-President,
Finance/Administration & C.F.O., (403) 221-0855; or Karen Taylor, Manager,
Corporate Communications, (403) 221-0891, Fax: (403) 221-0888, Toll-Free:
(888) 257-1873
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