Dana Gas will follow a strategy of balancing new capex against payments in Egypt as the Sharjah energy-based firm posts a 17 per cent second quarter profit drop due to costs linked to the restructuring of its $700 million sukuk.
“Since the Arab Spring and the revolution, the receivables position of Dana Gas has fluctuated between $200 million and $250m on a year-end basis. There have been high points and low points," Dana Gas chief executive Patrick Allman-Ward told reporters. "The worst was over $300m and the best was at $190m odd but over the course of the last seven years the overall position has not substantially improved.”
The Abu Dhabi-listed company said its receivables position in the North African state was around $202m of which $120m was overdue.
The company received $40m from Egypt towards paying its receivables in May. Dana Gas, which finds its current payments position in Egypt untenable, will not likely opt for a legal recourse, as there are no disputes with respect to receivables outstanding.
“Unlike others there is no dispute. They [Egypt] fully recognise they owe us money and the issue is about the capacity to pay,” Mr Allman-Ward told reporters.
“And that’s why we’re not in any kind of legal process in Egypt but we’re in discussion with the government to make it clear to them that the sooner they pay us the sooner we would reinvest the money back into Egypt, which is good for Egypt and also for Dana Gas."
The company, which has operating interests in Iraqi Kurdistan as well, has emerged from a protracted legal battle with its sukuk holders, issuing a new sized down Islamic finance instrument of $530m.
The pared-down instrument, relaxed dividend covenants as well as lower profit rate are expected to reduce the company’s annual finance cost by $35m annually, translating into 63 per cent reduction, the company said on Tuesday.
The reduction would provide a “strong improvement” to the firm’s financial position and planned dividend policy, it added.
Dana Gas' net profit for the second quarter declined 17 per cent to $10m due to costs associated with the restructuring of the sukuk.
The end to the sukuk saga will help the company move forward with its exploration and development plans, Dana Gas added.
The firm, which has plans to drill a fourth exploration well in Egypt as well as boost gas production by 25 per cent in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, has no further plans to issue debt, the chief executive said.
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Read more:
Dana Gas says sukuk holders approve restructuring to end legal dispute
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Exclusive: Dana Gas ready to import Iranian gas if supplies are 'reliable'
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Dana Gas, which is also entangled in a legal dispute with state-owned National Iranian Oil Company over a gas pipeline agreement signed in 2001, will hear the final judgment on the amount of expected damages towards the end of October.
Mr Allman-Ward declined to comment on expected damages to Dana Gas, whose parent Crescent Petroleum had inked a pact to receive 600 million cubic feet a day of gas to supply Sharjah from the offshore Salman field via an under-sea pipeline.
Apart from a test run in 2010, which found leaks during transmission, the pipeline has remained unused.
Mr Allman-Ward said the company anticipated NIOC to challenge the process and expected the legal process to continue for a year before the English high court.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
'Tell the Machine Goodnight' by Katie Williams
Penguin Randomhouse
COMPANY PROFILE
Initial investment: Undisclosed
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Core42
Current number of staff: 47
More coverage from the Future Forum
pakistan Test squad
Azhar Ali (capt), Shan Masood, Abid Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Asad Shafiq, Babar Azam, Fawad Alam, Haris Sohail, Imran Khan, Kashif Bhatti, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Mohammad Abbas, Yasir Shah, Usman Shinwari
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
Safety 'top priority' for rival hyperloop company
The chief operating officer of Hyperloop Transportation Technologies, Andres de Leon, said his company's hyperloop technology is “ready” and safe.
He said the company prioritised safety throughout its development and, last year, Munich Re, one of the world's largest reinsurance companies, announced it was ready to insure their technology.
“Our levitation, propulsion, and vacuum technology have all been developed [...] over several decades and have been deployed and tested at full scale,” he said in a statement to The National.
“Only once the system has been certified and approved will it move people,” he said.
HyperloopTT has begun designing and engineering processes for its Abu Dhabi projects and hopes to break ground soon.
With no delivery date yet announced, Mr de Leon said timelines had to be considered carefully, as government approval, permits, and regulations could create necessary delays.
About Housecall
Date started: July 2020
Founders: Omar and Humaid Alzaabi
Based: Abu Dhabi
Sector: HealthTech
# of staff: 10
Funding to date: Self-funded
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A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
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