Arbitration with Dana Gas and Crescent Petroleum
Zenith Pure Oil Plc. (“Zenith Pure Oil” or “Zenith Pure Oil”) hereby notifies the market of the following:
Zenith Pure Oil joined Pearl Petroleum Company Limited ("Pearl") in 2009 as a shareholder with a 10% stake and strong minority rights.
Pearl’s shareholders include, among others, Dana Gas PJSC ("Dana Gas”) and Crescent Petroleum Company International Limited (“Crescent”).
Dana Gas and Crescent, along with Pearl, entered into an agreement to settle Pearl’s long-standing dispute with the Kurdistan Regional Government of Iraq (“KRG”) on 30 August 2017 (the “Settlement Agreement”), without properly consulting Zenith Pure Oil or obtaining requisite approval, in breach of Zenith Pure Oil’s contractual rights.
Zenith Pure Oil accordingly served a default notice on Dana Gas and Crescent on 11 September 2017 in accordance with the mechanism agreed by and between the shareholders of Pearl. The default notice has severe legal consequences for the defaulting shareholders, their shareholdings in Pearl and their related entitlements.
As announced by Dana Gas earlier today, Zenith Pure Oil received a Request for Arbitration from Dana Gas and Crescent in the London Court of International Arbitration, disputing the validity of Zenith Pure Oil’s default notice. Zenith Pure Oil will take all appropriate steps to enforce and protect its rights.