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Gold/Mining/Energy : KERM'S KORNER -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Herb Duncan who wrote (9566)	3/16/1998 8:33:00 PM
From: Herb Duncan	Respond to of 15196

CORP / TransGlobe Energy Corporation Update TSE, ASE SYMBOL: TGL ASE SYMBOL: TGL.S NASDAQ SYMBOL: TGLEF MARCH 16, 1998 CALGARY, ALBERTA--TransGlobe Energy Corporation (ASE, symbols "TGL" and "TGL.S", TSE symbol "TGL", NASDAQ symbol "TGLEF") announced that at its Annual and Extraordinary General Meeting yesterday, approximately 55 percent of the shareholders were present in person or by proxy and all resolutions proposed by management were approved un-amended with far more than the required majorities, including the re-election of all the directors and the approval of the Shareholder Rights Plan. Following the legal business of the meeting, TransGlobe's President, Ross Clarkson gave a presentation to the shareholders and analysts present. "My goal is to effectively balance high-impact international exploration with low-risk exploration and development projects in North America," announced Ross Clarkson. For Block S1 in Yemen, TransGlobe will be providing consulting services to its joint venture partner Vintage Petroleum Inc. (NYSE), which wants to take advantage of TransGlobe management's extensive experience in Yemen. There are a number of possible drilling targets on Block S1, all close to existing water wells, roads and pipelines (shown in green on the map at page 11 of TransGlobe's annual report, available by calling TransGlobe or at www.sedar.com). Tentative targets based on previous exploration results by Shell Oil and the Russians, depending on the results of further seismic surveys. TransGlobe has a 25 percent interest in Block S1, carried for the first US$20 million of exploration, except for US$1.25 million to be paid upon the receipt of the Yemen Parliament's approval of the Block S1 Production Sharing Agreement ("PSA"). Regarding Block 32, Yemen, in which TransGlobe has an 8 percent working interest, Mr. Clarkson announced that TransGlobe management was very pleased with the results of the Tasour 1 well which production tested at 4,877 BOPD (limited by pump capacity). However, the operator was discussing amendments to the Block 32 PSA with the Yemen Ministry of Oil and Petroleum Resources ("MOMR") to improve the economics of development to TransGlobe and its partners in Block 32, and depending on the outcome, an appraisal program was planned for 1998. In the United States, Mr. Clarkson described management's plans to attempt to follow up on the success of the BROG well in East Meridian, Montana, which tested at 800 BOPD and is currently producing at a stabilized rate of 350 BOPD (TransGlobe 50 percent working interest). TransGlobe plans to drill additional horizontal wells this year. Just 60km east of the East Meridian project, in December 1997 TransGlobe farmed in with Choctaw Corporation on the Moline Lake prospect. Four square miles of 3D seismic was shot in that month, and TransGlobe plans to drill the first exploration well horizontally in mid-1998. "This past year since we took over management of TransGlobe, we have turned around the previous production and cash flow declining trends. Both cash flow and production are improving, and we expect them to continue increasing in each quarter in 1998 compared with the previous quarter" concluded Ross Clarkson.

To: Herb Duncan who wrote (9566)	3/16/1998 8:39:00 PM
From: Herb Duncan	Respond to of 15196

FIELD ATIVITIES / TecnoPetrol Announces Commencement of 3D Seismic Recording at Los Angeles Field CANADIAN DEALING NETWORK SYMBOL: TPTE.U MARCH 16, 1998 TORONTO, ONTARIO--TecnoPetrol Inc. announced today that it has commenced recording 3D seismic in its Los Angeles field in the Middle Magdalena basin in Colombia. The Los Angeles oil field is located in the northern part of the basin in the immediate vicinity of Harken Energy Corporation's Bolivar block. The basin has been producing approximately 50,000 BOPD from tertiary formations and Harken recently announced the successful completion of its first well in the block, Catalina 1, which is in the Rosa Blanca cretaceous formation and tested at 9680 BOEPD of thirty eight degree gravity crude. This discovery reconfirmed the presence of a cretaceous oil system in the basin. It also confirmed the presence of carbonate fractured reservoirs with primary porosities similar to those producing in other parts of the world. TecnoPetrol's Los Angeles field lies in the migration path between the well-known oil generating ponds in the basin and the Bolivar block. TecnoPetrol has identified four cretaceous exploratory prospects in this field and another four in its Santa Lucia field which lies nearby to the south. The recording of 3D seismic follows the reprocessing of existing 2D seismic, and will be used to better define the drilling locations of its four prospects in the Los Angeles field. The first well, the Piloso 1, is expected to be located some twenty kilometres southeast of the Catalina 1. The spudding date is scheduled for August, subject to suitable rig availability. The well will be drilled using the most advanced techniques and will be completed horizontally in one of the three cretaceous formations, La Luna, El Tablazo or Rosa Blanca. Oriented cores will be taken during drilling to determine the direction of the fractures to guide drilling decisions. The Piloso 1 will be TecnoPetrol's first well in Colombia and the Company anticipates that it will prove substantial reserves of thirty-eight degrees API or higher gravity crude. According to the Company's reservoir studies, production rates of approximately 10,000 BOEPD could be achieved. TecnoPetrol is a Canadian company, formed in December 1996, that has made a very rapid entry to the Colombian oil scene. It has close to one million acres under exploration covering the Los Angeles and Santa Lucia fields in the Middle Magdalena, additional acreage under application in the same basin, the Alejo block in the Cesar/Rancheria basin and a 25 percent interest in the Vuelta Larga block in the Llanos basin. These areas offer potential recoverable reserves of over one billion barrels of oil equivalent. Issued and outstanding shares as of March 11, 1998: 24,789,168

To: Herb Duncan who wrote (9566)	3/16/1998 8:41:00 PM
From: Herb Duncan	Respond to of 15196

FINANCING / First Star Energy Completes Private Placement ASE SYMBOL: FST MARCH 16, 1998 CALGARY, ALBERTA--First Star Energy Ltd. ("First Star") announces that it has completed a private placement of shares for proceeds of $500,000 on March 13, 1998. The private placement was to 4 subscribers for a total of 977,358 shares (at subscription prices of between $0.50 and $0.53 per share). The officer responsible for issuance of this press release and who may be contacted for further information is John E. Squarek, President.

To: Herb Duncan who wrote (9566)	3/16/1998 8:46:00 PM
From: Herb Duncan	Respond to of 15196

FIELD ACTIVITIES / Altai Resources Inc. Announces Discovery of a New Structure for Gas Storage in Lac St. Pierre Permits TSE SYMBOL: ATI OTC Bulletin Board SYMBOL: ARSEF MARCH 16, 1998 TORONTO, ONTARIO--Altai Resources Inc. announces discovery of an additional structure for gas storage in the Lac St. Pierre permits. Recently completed high resolution seismic surveys in the southern and land portion of the permit area outlined a shallow structure which may contain 1.7 billion cubic feet of gas. The survey amounted to 42 kilometres and cost $350,000. The gas-gas storage permits, aggregating to 132,000 acres, are located in the Sorel area, 100 kilometres East of Montreal, Province of Quebec, Canada. To date approximately 50% of the permit area has been covered by seismic surveys. Twenty-three possible gas reservoirs aggregating to 30 billion cubic feet have been outlined and two of these reservoirs were tested by wells and both wells intersected gas in recent unconsolidated gravels capped by clay. The reservoirs are shallow; they are at less than 120 m depth, and have high porosity and permeability. Therefore, they are eminently suitable for rapid injection - production type of gas storage operation to take advantage of seasonal as well as peak - off peak gas price differentials. Intragas, a joint venture between SOQUIP (Quebec Government) and Gas de France (French Government), has been successfully operating such a storage facility with a capacity of 1.7 billion cubic feet located about one kilometre away from Altai's permits. Altai has 49 percent interest in this property while 51 percent is held by a privately-owned Montreal-based company. A third company (Great Legends Mining Inc.) has an option to earn 50 percent interest by making expenditures and payments amounting to $3.5 million over four years. The next phase of the program would be to drill test three or four of these structures to determine their reservoir characteristics in order to undertake a feasibility to initially develop a gas storage facility of 3 to 4 billion cubic feet. Capacity can be increased subsequently by adding other reservoirs. Internal pre-feasibility study completed in 1992 had indicated that a storage facility, with a capacity of 3.6 billion cubic feet will provide $73 million net (after recovery of capital costs) pre-tax cash flow in the first 10 years of its operation.

To: Herb Duncan who wrote (9566)	3/16/1998 8:52:00 PM
From: Herb Duncan	Respond to of 15196

CORP / Granger Energy Exits Heavy Oil ASE SYMBOL: GAS.A GAS.B GAS.C MARCH 16, 1998 CALGARY, ALBERTA--Granger Energy Corp. reports that it has accepted an Offer to Purchase its 20 percent interest in a heavy oil project at Majestic, Alberta plus other minor holdings in central Alberta for approximately $3.9 million, subject to normal closing conditions and adjustments. The sale includes approximately 12,300 net acres of land and a gas gathering/compression system in the Atlee-Buffalo/Majestic area. Closing is scheduled for April 30, 1998. Following closing, the Company will have approximately 200 thousand cubic feet of gas and 400 barrels per day of light and medium gravity oil production, 65 percent of which is hedged on a net revenue barrel basis at $US20.40 per barrel until the end of 1998. Granger will also have approximately $2 million of working capital and $3 million of unused credit lines available for investment. The Company had previously announced its intention to seek proposals for sale or merger through its financial advisors Griffiths McBurney & Associates, and a data room is expected to be open shortly. GRANGER'S Class A, Class B and Class C shares trade on the Alberta Stock Exchange under the trading symbols GAS.A, GAS.B and GAS.C respectively.

To: Herb Duncan who wrote (9566)	3/16/1998 8:55:00 PM
From: Herb Duncan	Respond to of 15196

CORP / CORRECTION: for ALTAI RESOURCES INC. In the news release transmitted earlier today (March 16/98) for ALTAI RESOURCES INC., an error occurred in the stock symbol. The stock symbol should only be ATI. The complete and corrected release follows: NEWS RELEASE TRANSMITTED BY CANADIAN CORPORATE NEWS FOR: ALTAI RESOURCES INC. IN U.S.A.:SEC. RULE 12g3-2(b) FILE # 82-2950 TSE SYMBOL: ATI MARCH 16, 1998 CORRECTION: Altai Resources Inc. Announces Discovery of a New Structure for Gas Storage in Lac St. Pierre Permits TORONTO, ONTARIO--Altai Resources Inc. announces discovery of an additional structure for gas storage in the Lac St. Pierre permits. Recently completed high resolution seismic surveys in the southern and land portion of the permit area outlined a shallow structure which may contain 1.7 billion cubic feet of gas. The survey amounted to 42 kilometres and cost $350,000. The gas-gas storage permits, aggregating to 132,000 acres, are located in the Sorel area, 100 kilometres East of Montreal, Province of Quebec, Canada. To date approximately 50% of the permit area has been covered by seismic surveys. Twenty-three possible gas reservoirs aggregating to 30 billion cubic feet have been outlined and two of these reservoirs were tested by wells and both wells intersected gas in recent unconsolidated gravels capped by clay. The reservoirs are shallow; they are at less than 120 m depth, and have high porosity and permeability. Therefore, they are eminently suitable for rapid injection - production type of gas storage operation to take advantage of seasonal as well as peak - off peak gas price differentials. Intragas, a joint venture between SOQUIP (Quebec Government) and Gas de France (French Government), has been successfully operating such a storage facility with a capacity of 1.7 billion cubic feet located about one kilometre away from Altai's permits. Altai has 49 percent interest in this property while 51 percent is held by a privately-owned Montreal-based company. A third company (Great Legends Mining Inc.) has an option to earn 50 percent interest by making expenditures and payments amounting to $3.5 million over four years. The next phase of the program would be to drill test three or four of these structures to determine their reservoir characteristics in order to undertake a feasibility to initially develop a gas storage facility of 3 to 4 billion cubic feet. Capacity can be increased subsequently by adding other reservoirs. Internal pre-feasibility study completed in 1992 had indicated that a storage facility, with a capacity of 3.6 billion cubic feet will provide $73 million net (after recovery of capital costs) pre-tax cash flow in the first 10 years of its operation.

To: Herb Duncan who wrote (9566)	3/16/1998 8:59:00 PM
From: Herb Duncan	Respond to of 15196

CORP / Centennial Energy Partners : Announcement MARCH 16, 1998 NEW YORK, NEW YORK--Centennial Energy Partners, L.P., Tercentennial Energy Partners, L.P., Quadrennial Partners, L.P. and Joseph H. Reich & Co., Inc., (with respect to shares held in a discretionary account managed by it) announce that they in the aggregate acquired 70,110 common shares of Underbalanced Drilling Systems Corp. on March 13, 1998 through the facilities of The Toronto Stock Exchange. Centennial Energy Partners, L.L.C. is the General Partner of Centennial Energy Partners, L.P., Tercentennial Energy Partners, L.P., and Quadrennial Partners, L.P. and the principal members of Centennial Energy Partners, L.L.C. are also executive officers of Joseph H. Reich & Co., Inc. As previously announced, the purchases by Centennial Energy Partners, L.P., Tercentennial Energy Partners, L.P., Quadrennial Partners, L.P. and Joseph H. Reich & Co., Inc., of common shares of Underbalanced Drilling Systems Corp. are for the purpose of investment. As a result of their normal course purchases, Centennial Energy Partners, L.P., Tercentennial Energy Partners, L.P., Quadrennial Partners, L.P. and Joseph H. Reich & Co., Inc., currently own in the aggregate 1,446,911 common shares of Underbalanced Drilling Systems Corp., representing 17.62 percent of the issued and outstanding common shares. Centennial Energy Partners, L.P., Tercentennial Energy Partners, L.P., Quadrennial Partners, L.P. and Joseph H. Reich & Co., Inc., may continue to purchase common shares of Underbalanced Drilling Systems Corp. for investment purposes, depending on the market conditions for shares of Underbalanced Drilling Systems Corp. and other factors.

To: Herb Duncan who wrote (9566)	3/16/1998 9:02:00 PM
From: Herb Duncan	Respond to of 15196

EARNINGS / Hyduke Announces Nine Months Financial Results, 275 Percent Growth in Shareholder Equity, 480 Percent Growth in Retained Earnings ASE SYMBOL: HYD MARCH 16, 1998 EDMONTON, ALBERTA-- (Based on a comparison of third quarter operating results for January 31, 1998 and 1997) Hyduke Capital Resources Ltd. is pleased to announce the financial results of the company for the nine months ended January 31, 1998. Sales for the three quarters ended January 31, 1998 were $22,871,000. This compares to sales for the entire fiscal year ended April, 1997 of $15,107,000. As such Hyduke is on track to achieve its goal of doubling sales on a year-to-year basis. Earnings are showing even better performance as the efficiencies of integrating The Hyduke Group of Companies starts to show on the bottom line. E.B.I.D.T.(earnings before interest, depreciation and taxes) for the nine month period ended January 31, 1998 exceeded $2,761,000. BW Rig Manufacturing division finished taking occupancy of an additional 10,000 square feet of manufacturing facility space on March, 1998. This brings the total available repair space for BW Rig to 42,000 square feet situated on a 4.5 acre lot. This has increased operational capacity by 280 percent from March 1, 1997 to March 1, 1998. See the following Schedule. /T/ Schedule FINANCIAL POSITION & OPERATING RESULTS (all financial figures presented in Canadian dollars) KEY BALANCE SHEET INFORMATION (as at January 31, 1998 and 1997) Percent 1998 1997 Change ---- ---- ------- Current Assets $ 11,026,693 $ 4,377,332 152 ------------- ----------- ------------- ----------- Total Assets $ 13,063,085 $ 5,229,655 150 ------------- ----------- ------------- ----------- Shareholders' Equity $ 3,681,798 $ 1,337,385 175 ------------- ----------- ------------- ----------- INCOME STATEMENTS (Nine months ended January 31, 1998 and 1997) Percent Jan. 31, 1998 Jan, 31, 1997 Change ------------- ------------- ------- Sales $ 22,870,795 $ 11,003,770 101 ------------ ------------ ------------ ------------ Net Earnings (Loss) $ 1,568,417 $ 501,908 213 ------------ ------------ ------------ ------------ Basic Earnings per Share $ 0.21 ------------- ------------- Earnings per Share before amortization, interest and taxes $ 0.37 ------------- ------------- /T/