Challenger Energy shareholders vote to exit T&T completely

Challenger Energy Group PLC is set to completely exit Trinidad and Tobago after an overwhelming majority of shareholders voted in favour of selling all its assets in the country. At an emergency general meeting held on March 27, 99.93% of shareholders backed the decision, as the company’s operations in Trinidad and Tobago have been unprofitable.

Challenger Energy operates three small onshore fields, Goudron, Innis-Trinity and Icacos. Challenger announced in mid-February it entered a transaction to exit Trinidad & Tobago by divesting its assets for US$6 million. The transaction has the possibility of reaching US$8 million.



“Challenger Energy is pleased to announce that it has entered into a transaction for the sale of all of the Company’s remaining business in Trinidad and Tobago, for a total transaction value to the Company of US$6 million (which could increase to up to US$8 million under certain future production criteria). The Transaction represents a complete exit of the Company from its operations in Trinidad and Tobago, including from all liabilities and potential exposures associated with those operations,” it stated. “The Company has agreed to sell 100% of its St Lucia domiciled subsidiary company, Columbus Energy (St Lucia) Ltd, which in turn holds various subsidiary entities that collectively represent all of the Company’s business, assets and operations in Trinidad and Tobago,” a release from Challenger stated.

The purchaser is Caribbean Rex Ltd, an entity jointly owned by T-Rex Resources (Trinidad) Ltd (51%), a wholly owned subsidiary of Predator Oil & Gas Holding Plc, and the West Indian Energy Group Limited (49%), a Trinidadian company active in the domestic oil industry. Challenger said it expects the asset disposal to conclude by April 30, after the pending approval from Heritage Petroleum. Eytan Uliel, chief executive officer of Challenger Energy said: “As previously advised, for some time we have been considering the future for our business in Trinidad and Tobago, ultimately concluding that our capital and efforts can be better deployed.

Through this Transaction we receive both upfront and deferred consideration, we retain an ability to benefit from future upside performance of the assets sold, we remove various liabilities, provisions and exposures from our balance sheet, and we streamline our activities. Most importantly, exiting from Trinidad and Tobago allows full focus on our core assets in Uruguay, where we believe the opportunity to create near-term value for our shareholders is considerably greater, as we execute on our busy work programme in both AREA OFF-1 and AREA OFF-3 in 2025. We look forward to updating the market in due course.

” The sale reflects a complete exit of the Company from Trinidad and Tobago. For the year ended June 30, 2024, CEG Trinidad made a loss of approximately US$0.6 million.

As at 30 June 2024, CEG Trinidad had total net assets of approximately US$5.8 million. “Proceeds received from the Transaction will be used for general working capital in the Company’s operations.

In respect of POGH shares received as part of the consideration, the Company’s intention is to liquidate those shares for cash, but in an orderly fashion and at a time of the Company’s choosing,” it stated. Challenger held an Emergency General Meeting for shareholders to vote on the potential disposal of CEG Trinidad and its various subsidiary entities, which collectively represent all of the company’s business, assets, undertakings, and operations in Trinidad and Tobago “As a result of the meeting, the disposal of all of the Company’s remaining business in Trinidad and Tobago, as announced on 18 February 2025 has now been approved by shareholders but remains subject to obtaining approval from Heritage Petroleum Limited, the state-owned national oil company of Trinidad and Tobago, as a condition precedent to complete the Trinidad Disposal. Anticipated completion is due to occur by 30 April 2025.

,” it stated. More than 37.1 million shareholders voted for the assets to be sold, while 27,397 voted against it.

Some 8.5 million shareholders withheld their vote. Challenger Energy is an energy company focused on the Atlantic-margin, with significant operations in Uruguay.

The company holds two offshore exploration licenses in Uruguay, covering a total of 19,000 square kilometres, and is partnered with Chevron on the AREA-OFF 1 block. Challenger Energy is listed on the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange. Challenger Energy is the operator of three producing fields, all onshore Trinidad.

Across these fields there are a total 250 wells, of which approximately 60 are in production at any given time. Within the fields, regular well workover operations are undertaken on the existing production well stock, including well stimulation operations, reperforations, reactivations and repairs to shut-in wells, as and when appropriate. Assets Goudron Challenger Energy owns and operates 100% of the Goudron field by way of an enhanced production service contract (EPSC) with Heritage Petroleum Company Limited (“Heritage”), the Trinidadian state-owned oil and gas company.

The current term of the EPSC runs until June 30, 2030. Inniss-Trinity Challenger owns and operates 100% of the Inniss-Trinity field by way of an incremental production service contract (“IPSC”) with Heritage. The current term of the IPSC runs until 30 September 2031.

SWP The SWP contains the Icacos producing oilfields and the Perseverance and Columbia nonproducing fields, in which Challenger Energy Group holds a 100% operated interest via a number of private leases covering the Bonasse, Cedros and Icacos licence areas. Breakdown of the Transaction: Consideration represents a total transaction value of US$6 million, whereby: * the Company will receive cash and liquid securities of US$1.75 million, to be applied to general working capital and further strengthening the Company’s balance sheet: — an initial deposit of US$0.

25 million in POGH shares (approximately 4.4 million POGH shares to be issued to the Company); — US$0.75 million on completion - US$0.

25 million in cash and US$0.5 million in POGH shares (the number of POGH shares to be issued will be based on the exchange rate and market price of POGH shares at the time of completion); and — US$0.75 million, in cash, in three equal instalments at year-end 2025, 2026 and 2027; and * on completion WEIGL will assume all liabilities, provisions and potential exposures of the business, assets and operations in Trinidad and Tobago, which for the purposes of the proposed Transaction are agreed to be US$4.

25 million. * At year-end 2027, an additional contingent payment of potentially up to US$2 million is also available, under certain conditions linked to production exceeding 750 bopd..