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

To: Kerm Yerman who wrote (13110)	10/30/1998 4:43:00 PM
From: Kerm Yerman	Respond to of 15196

FIELD ACTIVITIES / Circle Energy Inc. to Spud Natural Gas Well at Greencourt, Alberta CALGARY, Oct. 30 /CNW/ - Circle Energy Inc. today announced the Company will spud a well targeting natural gas at Greencourt, Alberta early next week. Circle has a 50% working interest in this well targeting Pekisko/Nordegg natural gas. If successful, the 1500 metre target will be on production for the peak winter heating season. Circle has a 25% working interest in a West Texas well which has been suspended subject to further reviews. Plans are underway to launch a winter drilling program in New Mexico subject to the completion of the Greencourt, Alberta gas well and our Brazeau River drilling program. Circle Energy Inc. is a petroleum and natural gas exploration company that holds oil and gas leases in the Brazeau, Waskatenau and Morinville areas of Central Alberta; in Guadalupe, Lea and Quay Counties in New Mexico; and in West Texas, USA. The Company's shares trade on The Alberta Stock Exchange under the symbol CEN. The Alberta Stock Exchange has neither approved nor disapproved the information contained herein.

To: Kerm Yerman who wrote (13110)	10/30/1998 4:47:00 PM
From: Kerm Yerman	Respond to of 15196

Amber Energy Inc. Announces Third Quarter Financial and Operating Results CALGARY, Oct. 30 /CNW/ - Amber Energy Inc. (''Amber'') announces its third quarter financial and operating results for the nine-month period ended August 31, 1998. HIGHLIGHTS For the nine months ended August 31 (unaudited) 1998 1997 % Change ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Operations Production Heavy oil 12,988 4,594 183 Light oil and NGLs 3,380 2,441 38 Total crude oil and NGLs (Bbl/d) 16,368 7,035 133 Natural gas (Mmcf/d) 92.9 91.1 2 Barrels of oil equivalent (Boe/d) 25,658 16,145 59 Average product prices Heavy oil 7.31 13.05 (44) Light oil and NGLs 19.18 27.29 (30) Total crude oil and NGLs ($/Bbl) 9.76 17.99 (45) Natural gas ($/Mcf) 1.61 1.65 (2) Average production expenses Heavy oil 1.99 2.73 (27) Light oil and NGLs 4.71 7.12 (34) Total crude oil and NGLs ($/Bbl) 2.55 4.25 (40) Natural gas ($/Mcf) 0.28 0.24 17 Total production expenses ($/Boe) 2.63 3.23 (19) Wells drilled Gross 143 172 (17) Net 126.1 115.8 9 Success rate 93 92 - Financial ($000's) Revenues (before royalties) 84,856 75,853 12 Funds from operations 37,730 42,061 (10) Net income (loss) (785) 10,821 (107) Capital expenditures 234,969 205,915 14 Issue of common shares 82,155 63,488 29 As at August 31 Working capital deficit (surplus) (9,259) 9,599 (196) Long-term debt 344,345 158,352 117 Shareholders' equity 244,112 158,406 54 Total assets 632,070 366,775 72 Common shares outstanding (000's) 57,994 52,526 10 Weighted average common shares (000's) 56,569 51,281 10 Per share data ($/share) Funds from operations: basic 0.67 0.82 (18) fully diluted 0.65 0.78 (17) Earnings (loss): basic (0.01) 0.21 (105) fully diluted (0.01) 0.21 (105) On September 15, 1998 Amber announced that it had been notified of an unsolicited bid of $7.00 for each of the common shares of Amber by Alberta Energy Company Ltd. (''AEC''). Since that time the Amber Board of Directors has been thoroughly and actively involved in a process designed to enhance shareholder value. Amber established a Special Committee of the Board of Directors and appointed financial advisors to assist in assessing all of its strategic alternatives. As a result of this process, the Amber Board of Directors accepted a revised offer from AEC of $7.50 per share and recommended that Amber shareholders tender their shares to the AEC offer. On October 26, 1998 AEC announced that it had received and taken up approximately 88% of Amber's shares outstanding and that it has extended its offer to the remaining Amber shareholders until November 4, 1998. OPERATIONS Average oil production for the nine months ended August 31, 1998 increased by 133% to 16,368 barrels of oil per day, including 12,988 barrels per day of heavy oil. Natural gas production remained stable at 92.9 million cubic feet per day during the nine months ended August 31, 1998. Amber drilled 126.1 net wells during the first nine months of 1998, resulting in 93% drilling success rate. Capital expenditures reached $234.9 million in the first nine months of 1998. This large capital program was led by $102.4 million for drilling and completion costs and $109.4 million for equipment and facilities. Operating expenses for heavy oil averaged $1.99 per barrel in the first nine months of 1998, which we believe are the lowest operating costs for heavy oil in the Canadian oil and gas industry. Company oil operating costs averaged $2.55 per barrel, a reduction of 40% over the same period in 1997. Natural gas operating costs increased by 17% to average $0.28 per mcf in the first nine months of 1998. Drilling Activity For the nine months ended August 31, 1998 Success Oil Gas Dry Total Rate (%) ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Gross Net Gross Net Gross Net Gross Net Gross Net ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Exploratory 6 4.0 7 5.5 6 5.6 19 15.1 68 63 Development 73 69.6 26 17.2 2 1.2 101 88.0 98 99 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Total 79 73.6 33 22.7 8 6.8 120 103.1 93 93 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Stratigraphic test wells 23 23.0 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Total wells drilled 143 126.1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Capital Expenditures ($ millions) For the nine months ended August 31 1998 1997 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Land 23.9 53.7 Seismic 5.4 8.9 Drilling and completion 102.4 69.4 Well equipment and facilities 109.4 42.5 Property acquisitions (net of dispositions) (6.5) 30.9 Other 0.3 0.5 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Total 234.9 205.9 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- FINANCIAL Continued low oil prices resulted in the average selling price of Amber's crude oil in the first nine months of 1998 being $9.76 per barrel, a drop of 45% from the same period in 1997. Natural gas prices remained relatively stable averaging $1.61 per mcf during the nine months ended August 31, 1998. Despite higher production and extremely low operating costs, lower oil prices were the main contributor to a 10% decrease in cash flow to $37.7 million and a net loss for the reporting period of $0.8 million. The Company announced on August 11, 1998 the completion of a private placement of debt with U.S. institutional investors by issuing US$113 million in Senior Notes and US$40 million in Senior Subordinated Notes. Proceeds were used to repay existing bank debt. QUARTERLY INFORMATION 1998 1997 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Q3 Q2 Q1 Q3 Q2 Q1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Financial ($000's) Revenues (before royalties) 31,421 25,542 27,893 25,132 22,732 27,989 Funds from operations 13,791 10,638 13,301 13,772 11,656 16,633 Net income (loss) (400) (897) 512 2,948 2,114 5,759 Capital expenditures 22,885 57,076 155,008 47,856 57,428 100,631 Per share data ($/share) Funds from operations: basic 0.24 0.18 0.25 0.26 0.22 0.34 fully diluted 0.23 0.18 0.24 0.25 0.21 0.32 Earnings (loss): basic 0.00 (0.02) 0.01 0.05 0.04 0.12 fully diluted 0.00 (0.02) 0.01 0.06 0.03 0.12 Common shares outstanding (000's) 57,994 57,994 57,689 52,526 52,522 52,238 Operations Production Heavy oil 15,206 11,230 12,518 6,438 4,579 2,724 Light oil and NGLs 2,993 3,812 3,336 2,467 2,436 2,420 ---------------------------------------------- Total crude oil and NGLs (Bbl/d) 18,199 15,042 15,854 8,905 7,014 5,144 Natural gas (Mmcf/d) 88.5 95.0 95.3 90.5 94.2 88.7 Barrels of oil equivalent (Boe/d) 27,049 24,542 25,384 17,955 16,434 14,014 Average product prices Heavy oil 9.68 4.92 6.57 12.32 11.03 18.26 Light oil and NGLs 18.69 18.57 20.33 24.25 26.70 31.07 ---------------------------------------------- Total crude oil and NGLs ($/Bbl) 11.16 8.38 9.47 15.62 16.47 24.28 Natural gas ($/Mcf) 1.56 1.60 1.66 1.48 1.40 2.10 Average production expenses Heavy oil 1.93 2.17 1.91 2.77 2.60 2.88 Light oil and NGLs 4.92 4.46 4.82 7.06 6.51 7.81 --------------------------------------------- Total crude oil and NGLs ($/Bbl) 2.42 2.75 2.52 3.95 3.96 5.20 Natural gas ($/Mcf) 0.30 0.31 0.23 0.26 0.24 0.23 Amber is an independent Canadian oil and gas exploration, development and production company with common shares trading on both The Toronto Stock Exchange and The Alberta Stock Exchange under the symbol AMB.

To: Kerm Yerman who wrote (13110)	10/30/1998 4:51:00 PM
From: Kerm Yerman	Respond to of 15196

EARNINGS / Ultra Petroleum Announces 1998 Financial Results VANCOUVER, B.C-- Ultra Petroleum reported a significant increase in operating revenues as a result of rising production during its fiscal year ending June 30, 1998. During the year, the Company invested a record $31 million in lease acquisition, seismic evaluations, and exploration and development drilling activities in the Green River Basin of Wyoming. Ultra Petroleum recorded a net loss of $10.6 million, or $0.22 per share, on revenues of $3.7 million for the year-ended June 30, 1998. This compares with a net loss of $1.1million, or $.04 per share, on revenues of $440,000 for the year-ended June 30, 1997. The loss was the result of a combination of factors: * During the year, Ultra announced that the company would plug and abandon the White Estates #1 well in Henderson County, Texas. The plugging of this well had a negative impact on the Company's results for the year. The current year statements include a nonrecurring loss of $6.1 million resulting from this abandonment. In addition, the loss of previously recorded reserves was reflected in a ceiling-test write-down totaling $2.1 million. * Ultra reported depletion and depreciation expenses for the current period of $1.2 million compared with $60,500 for the year ended June 30, 1997. This reflects the impact of increased drilling activities in the Green River Basin and the abandonment of reserves discussed above. An increase in operating expenses during the year reflects the cost of operations mainly attributable to our Green River Basin activities. Taxes, including gathering fees, reflect the costs associated with the increase in our production. * Ultra's general and administrative expenses increased to $4.0 million in 1998 from $1.4 million in 1997. This increase is associated with the growth in the operating staff required to manage the development of our Green River Basin properties. Ultra President, Jerry Albertus said, "During the fiscal year, our exploration and development activities undertaken to define Ultra's Green River Basin asset met with considerable success. We were able to get 22 gross wells drilled through the combined investment of our own corporate resources and the assistance of our joint venture partners. Looking to the future, we are excited about the potential for the continued enhancement of this asset through accelerated drilling investments, which should result in reserve and revenue growth in fiscal 1999." Ultra Petroleum is a Vancouver-based natural gas exploration company that is developing and exploring its extensive acreage position in the Green River Basin in southwest Wyoming. Its current drilling program is targeting 29 new wells to be drilled along the highly prospective Pinedale anticline in Sublette County during fiscal 1999. By the end of the fiscal year, Ultra's proved and probable natural gas reserves rose to 302 billion cubic feet in the Green River Basin, up from 80 billion cubic feet at the end of fiscal 1997.

To: Kerm Yerman who wrote (13110)	10/30/1998 4:54:00 PM
From: Kerm Yerman	Respond to of 15196

MERGERS - ACQUISITIONS / Significant Demand for Alberta Energy Corp. Common Shares Results in Prorationing to Amber Shareholders CALGARY, Oct. 30 /CNW/ - ALBERTA ENERGY COMPANY LTD. (AEC) today said that the proration factor of 0.4125846 will be applicable to those Amber shareholders who elected payment in AEC Common Shares when tendering their shares by October 23 in the $780 million AEC acquisition of Amber Energy Inc. The aggregate number of AEC Common Shares issuable under the Offer was limited to 4,500,000. The percentage of the Amber common shares outstanding, on a diluted basis, tendered to the Offer was 88.45%. In accordance with the Offer, the aggregate number of AEC Common Shares available to those Amber shareholders whose shares were purchased by AEC on October 23 was 3,980,250. Elections for payment in AEC Common Shares aggregated 9,647,112 AEC Common Shares, exceeding the number of shares available. Accordingly, the specific proration factor applicable to those elections is 0.4125846. AEC has extended its Offer to 5:00 p.m. (Calgary time) Wednesday, November 4 to give Amber shareholders who did not deposit their Amber common shares additional time to accept the Offer. Focused and growing, AEC is one of Canada's largest upstream gas and oil exploration and production companies. Profitable midstream investments in pipelines, as well as natural gas storage and gas liquids processing, provide an additional solid income base. AEC's current stock market value exceeds $4.3 billion. AEC Common Shares trade on the Toronto and Montreal Stock Exchanges (AEC) and on the New York Stock Exchange (AOG).

To: Kerm Yerman who wrote (13110)	10/30/1998 4:57:00 PM
From: Kerm Yerman	Respond to of 15196

CORP. NOTICE / Netalco Corp. Announces Changes To Board Of Directors ETALCO CORPORATION ANNOUNCES CHANGES TO BOARD OF DIRECTORS AND MANAGEMENT TEAM CALGARY, ALBERTA-- Netalco Corporation ("Netalco" or the "Corporation") announces that concurrent with the effective completion of the acquisition of Saddle Resources Inc. ("Saddle") on October 21, 1998, all of the Directors of Netalco resigned, with the exception of Kenneth L. Broadhurst. The new Board of Directors is comprised of William S. Ward, Curtis A. Hartzler, J. Cameron Bailey, Troy K. Brazzoni, Matthew J. Brister and Kenneth L. Broadhurst. William S. Ward was appointed President and Chief Executive Officer and Kenneth L. Broadhurst was appointed Senior Vice President of the Corporation. On October 20, 1998, Netalco announced that its offer made on September 28, 1998 to purchase all of the issued and outstanding common shares of Saddle was successful and that it has taken up and paid for 6,457,450 common shares validly deposited under the offer. This represents approximately 93.9% of the outstanding common shares of Saddle. Pursuant to the Business Corporations Act (Alberta), Netalco has commenced proceedings to acquire, by way of compulsory acquisition, the balance of the common shares of Saddle which have not yet been deposited under the offer. The offer was made on the basis of 3.76 Common Shares of Netalco for each Saddle common share. Completion of the purchase of Saddle was contingent upon the approval of the Shareholders of the Corporation, which approval was provided at the Annual General and Special Meeting held on October 19, 1998. The Shareholders of the Corporation also approved a Special Resolution providing for the consolidation of the Common Shares on a One for Five basis. Upon the acquisition of 100% of the outstanding common shares of Saddle, the Corporation proposes to file the required documentation to effect the amalgamation with Saddle and the consolidation of its Common Shares. When completed, the name of the amalgamated corporation will be Saddle Resources Inc., with approximately 6.65 million Common Shares outstanding.

To: Kerm Yerman who wrote (13110)	10/30/1998 5:01:00 PM
From: Kerm Yerman	Respond to of 15196

CORP. NOTICE / Hurricane Kumkol Munai OJSC Hurricane Opposes Monopolistic Practices Hurricane Kumkol Munai, a subsidiary of Hurricane Hydrocarbons Ltd. distributed the following release at a news conference held in Almaty, Kazakhstan on Friday, October 30, 1998. ALMATY, KAZAKHSTAN, Oct. 30 /CNW/ - Hurricane Kumkol Munai OJSC continues to support President N.A. Nazarbayev's plans for a future of Kazakhstan based on market economy principles. As part of this mandate, the President supports policies which strive to eliminate corruption and monopolistic practices. Hurricane has taken a stand against monopolistic practices by requesting the government review the practices of the ''Shymkentnefteorgsintex'' (ShNOS) refinery in Shymkent. In 1996 the ShNOS refinery had processing contracts with Yuzhneftegas, now Hurricane Kumkol Munai, as well as with other companies which purchased crude oil from Hurricane and processed it at the refinery. This ensured fair competition in the market but since the beginning of 1998 this fair competition has ceased to exist. On August 4, 1998 Hurricane brought this issue to the Anti-Monopoly Committee (Shymkent regional branch) and outlined its concerns. A sample of these concerns included: - Attempt by refinery to control 100% of all processing and denying oil producers access to process at the ShNOS refinery (clear, unrestrained monopoly). - Exorbitant processing fees to levels significantly above the actual cost of processing. - Deliberate delays in shipping oil products to Hurricane's customers. - Failure to honor the payment terms agreed to for oil contracts. - Refusal to give correct product yields and exaggeration of product losses during processing. The Anti-Monopoly Committee ruled in Hurricane's favor on September 14, 1998. It stated in it's written report that ShNOS must resolve the issues brought forward by Hurricane. The refinery was given 10 days to address the issue. This time has expired with no attempt at resolution and the matter has been moved by the Anti-Monopoly Committee to the courts for resolution. The management of Hurricane continues to support the work of the Anti-Monopoly Committee and the vision of President Nazabayev for a country operating under fair business practices. The company anticipates a speedy resolution.

To: Kerm Yerman who wrote (13110)	10/30/1998 5:04:00 PM
From: Kerm Yerman	Respond to of 15196

CORP. NOTICE / Backer Petroleum Corp. Normal Course Issuer Bid BACKER PETROLEUM CORP. - ANNOUNCEMENT CALGARY, ALBERTA-- Backer Petroleum Corp. (Backer") announces that The Toronto Stock Exchange has accepted the Company's notice of Intention to Make a Normal Course Issuer Bid, and that the Bid will commence November 3, 1998. By way of a Normal Course Issuer Bid, the Company may purchase through the facilities of the Toronto Stock Exchange up to 134,000 of its issued share capital, which is approximately 2.00% of the 6,729,584 issued and outstanding shares as at October 28, 1998. The Company will pay market price for the securities at the time of purchase, The Board of Directors of the Company considers the common shares of the Company undervalued at current market prices. The Board considers that purchases of shares at or near such prices for the cancellation of such shares at the conclusion of the Bid, would be advantageous to all shareholders of the Issuer in that the equity attributable to the remaining issued common shares will be increased. The bid will terminate on November 2, 1999 or on the purchase of the 134,000 shares, whichever shall first occur. Pursuant to a Normal Course Issuer Bid on The Toronto Stock Exchange, the Issuer purchased (i) 61,000 of its shares from March 1, 1995 to October 2, 1995 at an average price of $0.64 per share; (ii) 73,000 of its shares from October 10, 1995 to October 9, 1996 at an average price of $0.69 per share; (iii) 21,000 of its shares from October 16, 1996 to October 15, 1997 at an average price of $0.75 per share; and (iv) 75,100 of its shares from November 3, 1997 to October 28, 1998 at an average price of $0.71 per share.

To: Kerm Yerman who wrote (13110)	10/30/1998 5:06:00 PM
From: Kerm Yerman	Respond to of 15196

CORP. NOTICE / Brigdon Resources Inc. Changing Fiscal Year CALGARY, Oct. 30 /CNW/ - Brigdon Resources Inc. (TSE - BRG.A) of Calgary today announced that it is changing its Financial Year End from March 31 to December 31, effective December 31, 1998. The Toronto Stock Exchange has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this Press Release.

To: Kerm Yerman who wrote (13110)	10/30/1998 5:09:00 PM
From: Kerm Yerman	Respond to of 15196

FINANCING / Consolidated Beacon Resources Ltd. Final Prospectus CONSOLIDATED BEACON RESOURCES LTD. ANNOUNCES RECEIPT FOR FINAL PROSPECTUS CALGARY, ALBERTA-- Consolidated Beacon Resources Ltd. (the "Corporation") announced today that its final prospectus dated October 22, 1998 was received and receipted by both the Alberta and Saskatchewan securities commissions. The prospectus qualifies the distribution of 1,667,005 common shares issuable upon the exercise (or deemed exercise) of 1,667,005 Flow-Through Special Warrants distributed by the Corporation on December 31, 1997 and 1,070,000 common shares and 1,070,000 common share purchase warrants issuable upon the exercise (or deemed exercise) of 1,070,000 Special Warrants distributed by the Corporation on November 4, 1997 and January 16, 1998. The Corporation will send to all holders of Flow-Through Special Warrants and Special Warrants a copy of the prospectus, the receipts issued by the Alberta and Saskatchewan securities commissions and directions regarding the steps such holders must take to receive certificates representing, in the case of holders of Flow-Through Special Warrants, common shares and, in the case of holders of Special Warrants, the common shares and the common share purchase warrants. The Corporation also announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary, Elliott Industrial Petroleum Ltd. has entered into an agreement with Pennzoil Products Canada Company, an affiliate of Pennzoil Products Company under which Elliott has been appointed as a non-exclusive distributor of Pennzoil(R) products in Saskatchewan. The Pennzoil products covered by the agreement include motor, gear and specialty oils, transmission, brake, power steering and hydraulic fluids, antifreeze, greases, oil filters, breather elements and air filters. The agreement also grants Elliott the right to use Pennzoil's trademarks in Saskatchewan. Consolidated Beacon Resources Ltd. is a Calgary based corporation engaged in the business of exploring for oil and natural gas in Western Canada and Nova Scotia. In addition, the Corporation manufactures and sells specialty lubricant products for the oil and gas and trucking industries, through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Elliott Industrial Petroleum Ltd. The issued and outstanding common shares of Consolidated Beacon are listed on the Alberta Stock Exchange under the trading symbol "KBC".

To: Kerm Yerman who wrote (13110)	10/30/1998 5:11:00 PM
From: Kerm Yerman	Read Replies (17) \| Respond to of 15196

DIVIDEND / Gulf Confirms August 1998 Dividend Rate for Series 1 Preference Shares DENVER, Aug. 31 /CNW/ - Gulf Canada Resources Limited today announced that the dividend rate for the month of August 1998 for Gulf Canada Resources Limited's Fixed/Adjustable Rate Senior Preference Shares, Series 1, has been calculated at $0.022 per share. The dividend is payable September 14, 1998 to shareholders of record at the close of business on August 31, 1998.