Wentworth Resources : Admission to trading on AIM

Wentworth Resources Limited

("Wentworth" or the "Company")

Admission to trading on AIM

Wentworth Resources Limited ("Wentworth" or the "Company"), an independent oil and gas company focused in the Rovuma Basin of East Africa, is pleased to announce that its entire ordinary share capital of 80,469,940 Ordinary Shares has today been admitted to trading on the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange plc.

Key Investment Highlights:

• East Africa is experiencing increased exploration, drilling and production activity and is benefiting from substantial oil discoveries in Uganda and natural gas discoveries in offshore Tanzania and Mozambique.  

• Wentworth has interests in three adjacent East African hydrocarbon concessions: Mnazi Bay in Tanzania, Onshore Rovuma Block in Mozambique and Offshore Rovuma Area 1 Block (via a net profits royalty) in Mozambique. It also has midstream and downstream assets in Tanzania, including the Mtwara Power Plant.

• Wentworth has interests in one PSA in Tanzania and two exploration and production concession contracts (EPCCs) in Mozambique with natural gas currently producing from Mnazi Bay.

• Focused portfolio of production, appraisal and exploration assets in Tanzania and Mozambique with significant upside potential, including:

-    169 Bcf of net P50 unrisked contingent resources and 618 Bcf of net P50 unrisked prospective resources in Mnazi Bay, Tanzania
-    154 Bcf of net P50 unrisked prospective resources in Onshore Rovuma Block, Mozambique
-     Exploration opportunities in both Mnazi Bay and Onshore Rovuma  
-    A net profits royalty in the Offshore Rovuma Area 1 Block, Mozambique that has increased in value as a result of five recent major natural gas discoveries by Anadarko

• Four wells drilled to date in Mnazi Bay, Tanzania. One well is currently producing and all four wells encountered hydrocarbons and are capable of producing.  

• Gas discoveries reported by Anadarko, BG Group, and ENI indicate significant potential resources may exist throughout the Rovuma Basin. 

• The Company has natural gas and electricity sales revenues. 

• Wentworth has significant future natural gas monetisation opportunities through:

-  a large-scale gas-to-petrochemicals project;
-  a Liquefied Natural Gas ('LNG') facility in development in Mozambique; and
-  a proposed natural gas pipeline from Mtwara, Tanzania to Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.

• Wentworth is working with recognised operators and partners such as Anadarko, Cove Energy and Maurel et Prom.  

• The Company has an experienced Board and management team who have previously worked together and have extensive knowledge of East Africa. They bring with them a diverse set of skills which include experience in exploration, large-scale field production and downstream oil and gas project development.

• London listing to access a wider investment base. 

• Panmure Gordon appointed as nominated adviser and broker and FirstEnergy Capital as broker to Wentworth.

Bob McBean, Executive Chairman, commented:

"East Africa is transforming from a relatively underexplored area to a proven and prolific hydrocarbon province which companies across the board are trying to enter.  Wentworth is an established player in the region and benefits from having exceptional partners with proven track records. Our acreage position is second to none with production, proven discoveries and significant exploration upside. This is an incredibly exciting portfolio which has been built by a team with extensive knowledge of the region and the industry.

Our objective is to become a leading integrated oil and gas producer in East Africa.  We believe that we have the expertise, the assets and the relationships in place to achieve this. Our listing on AIM is the next stage in our development as an integrated East African play."

Copies of the Company's AIM Admission Document are available from the Company's website www.wentworthresources.com.

Wentworth's Strategy

The Board's strategy is to become a leading integrated oil and gas producer in East Africa, a region in which it has significant expertise and which is expected to evolve into a major oil and gas region. The Company's management team has established good working relationships with the governments and industry in the region.

In addition to exploration, to which it is committed, the Company is also focused on monetising its known natural gas reserves and is studying ways of achieving this other than traditional gas sales to third parties. Several of the executives and directors of the Company have undertaken similar work in Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Indonesia and their proven gas monetisation experience is being applied in East Africa.

The following key points outline the Company's strategy:

• Actively explore for new discoveries of oil and natural gas 

• Prove up through the drill bit additional gas reserves in Mnazi Bay 

• Develop a petrochemicals facility to consume Tanzania gas 

• Production and sale of incremental gas to third parties 

Overview of Assets

Wentworth has interests in three adjacent East African hydrocarbon concessions: Mnazi Bay in Tanzania, Onshore Rovuma Block in Mozambique and Offshore Rovuma Area 1 Block (via a net profits royalty) in Mozambique. It also has midstream and downstream assets in Tanzania, including the Mtwara Power Plant. Wentworth's assets and operations comprise:

• Mnazi Bay Development: a 25.40% pro rata share in a proven and producing natural gas field in southern Tanzania 

• Mnazi Bay Exploration: a 31.75% pro rata share in an oil and gas exploration licence immediately adjacent and surrounding its proven natural gas field in southern Tanzania 

• Mnazi Bay Infrastructure: a 25.40% pro rata share of midstream natural gas infrastructure in Tanzania including two gas processing plants and 27 kilometres of pipeline 

• Mnazi Bay Power Plant: a 100% share of a regulated 18MW gas-fired power production plant in Tanzania (Mtwara Power Plant) 

• Onshore Rovuma Block: a 11.59% pro rata share in an oil and gas exploration licence in north-eastern Mozambique (primarily onshore) and a 13.64% paying interest during the exploration phases of the licence  

• Offshore Rovuma Block: a 4.95% net profits royalty in Cove Energy's 8.5% pro rata share of profit petroleum in an offshore northern Mozambique exploration licence 

Note: The percentage in relation to Mnazi Bay are the interest held by the subsidiaries involved in each of the projects and do not take into account the interest attributable to the holding of FMO in those subsidiaries

Summary of Contingent Resources (unrisked) Mnazi Bay Licence, Tanzania (Bcf)

*Recoverable resources in RPS are defined as estimated ultimate technically recoverable (EUR) resources

Summary of Prospective Resources (unrisked) Mnazi Bay Licence, Tanzania (Bcf)

* Recoverable resources in RPS are defined as estimated ultimate technically recoverable (EUR) resources

Summary of Prospective Resources (unrisked) Rovuma Licence, Onshore Mozambique (Bcf)

* Recoverable resources in RPS are defined as estimated ultimate technically recoverable (EUR) resources

Summary of assets

Notes:

1. Wentworth has a 31.75% working interest in the exploration operations of Mnazi Bay 

2. Under the terms of its Exploration and Production Concession Contract ("EPCC"), Wentworth has the option to enter into a subsequent phase expiring on 1 September 2015 

Long-term Gas Monetisation Strategy

Wentworth is actively studying the optimal way to develop and build a large-scale petrochemicals facility to monetise the Mnazi Bay natural gas resource. On June 26, 2010 a memorandum of understanding was signed with the Government of Tanzania (the ''MoU'') to ''.assess a potential domestic development project, which would include the aims of spurring industrial growth in the Mtwara and Lindi administrative regions, and utilising the domestic gas resource for the production of fertiliser, methanol and potentially other value-added products for use within these regions as well as throughout Tanzania and for sale abroad.'' Notwithstanding the expiry of the MoU, the Government of Tanzania has indicated its continuing support to the Company's effort to develop a fertiliser and methanol plant in Mtwara.

Nexant, an engineering and products marketing consultant, has been engaged to provide independent advice to the joint venture partners and to carry out a pre-feasibility study evaluating the various options for monetising the Mnazi Bay gas. The Mnazi Bay PSA joint venture partners along with representatives from the government of Tanzania are reviewing the results of this pre-feasibility study along with a similar study carried out by Maurel et Prom, as operator of the Mnazi Bay Concession, and will make a final decision whether to proceed to a full feasibility study complete with a Front End Engineering & Design (FEED) package.

Nexant has identified the deepwater Port of Mtwara (partially inside the Mnazi Bay Concession area) as a suitable site to construct the project as it provides marine access to land construction materials and transport finished products.

The Government of Tanzania recently announced plans to develop a 24 - 30 inch pipeline from Mtwara to Dar es Salaam. The pipeline is expected to connect Mnazi Bay, Songo Songo, Kiliwani/Nyuni, Mkuranga and deep sea gas reserves in the country.

Wentworth senior executives and directors include developers of previously successful gas monetisation projects including: Qatar Fuel Additives Corporation (Qatar); Dubai Gas Company (UAE); Ras Laffan LNG Company (Qatar); Arun LNG (Indonesia); and Statfjord "A" (Norway).

East Africa

Compared to the rest of Africa, the East remains a relatively underexplored region in terms of exploration activity and production. Despite its substantial potential, activity in the region has lagged behind with approximately 480 wells drilled to date compared with circa 14,600 in West Africa and more than 19,000 in Central and North Africa.

Following the discoveries in Uganda by Tullow and Heritage, offshore Tanzania by BG and Ophir, as well as Anadarko and ENI's success offshore Mozambique the region is generating significant interest from majors, large and small independent exploration companies and national oil companies.

At present, the majority of East African countries have no commercial petroleum production and rely heavily on imports to meet domestic needs. The region has been plagued by shortfalls in electrical output and as a result they have relied on thermal plants and gas to power projects to address power generation issues.

It is expected that a large proportion of domestic demand will be supplied through the increase in activity in the area bringing with it the discovery of additional gas resources. Continued gas discoveries will enable the region to undergo a transformation most notably by the expansion of regional gas infrastructure, although, significant capital will be required to build a network of pipelines, ports and facilities.

Board of Directors

Robert Phillip McBean, Executive Chairman
Mr. McBean is a mechanical engineer with over 40 years' experience in the upstream, midstream, and downstream oil and gas industries. He is an accomplished energy project developer and both a private and public company senior executive and director. His past accomplishments include: originating, developing, and serving as the first Managing Director of Qatar Fuel Additives Company (''QAFAC''), a world-scale methanol and MTBE petrochemicals facility in Qatar; originating, developing, and then serving as the first Managing Director of Dubai Natural Gas Company (''DUGAS''), an associated gas LPG processing facility in Dubai; and co-founding Scarboro Resources with interests and operations in Italy, Libya, Abu Dhabi, Indonesia, France, Pakistan and Canada.

John William Sharp Bentley, Deputy Chairman
Mr. Bentley has over 40 years of experience in international natural resource corporations at both the executive management and board level. He has a degree in Metallurgy from Brunel University. Mr. Bentley has had a specific focus in the upstream oil and gas industry in Africa having been instrumental in the formation of Energy Africa Ltd where he was CEO during the period 1996 through 2000. Prior to this, he held a number of senior positions in the Gencor Group. He is currently non-executive chairman of Faroe Petroleum plc, and of Scotgold Resources Ltd., and is a non-executive director of Resaca Exploitation Inc. and Kea Petroleum plc and SacOil Holdings Ltd.

Issa Shero Mohd Hussein Baluch, Non-Executive Director
Mr. Baluch is a past President of the Zurich based International Federation of Freight Forwarders Associations (FIATA) (2003 to 2005) and continues to serve as a board member. Mr. Baluch was recently appointed as chairman of Togo-based cargo airline Africa West following the acquisition of a controlling interest in Africa West by Dubai's Global Investments Limited. He also serves on the Board of Directors of Miami-based The International Air Cargo Association (TIACA). He served on the Advisory Board of Dubai Logistics City, and the Marketing Committee for the Dubai Flower and Perishables Center. He is an accomplished author of numerous industry publications, books, and educational textbooks. Mr. Baluch is also well known for his support of philanthropic projects throughout Africa and Asia which include: a model farm in Ghana; children relief projects; and orphanages in Kenya, Uganda and South Africa.

Cameron Barton, Non-Executive Director
Mr. Barton has over 30 years of finance and accounting experience within the energy industry and has held senior financial executive positions for multinational corporations in both Canada and New Zealand. He is currently the Chief Financial Officer with Sanjel Corporation, Canada's largest independently owned International Oil and Gas Pumping Services Company. Before joining Sanjel, Mr. Barton was the former President, CEO and CFO of Artumas Group Limited (now Wentworth). Mr. Barton served three years as Vice President and General Manager, and as Vice President of Finance (Canadian Western Region), for Direct Energy Marketing Limited (owned by Centrica plc in the UK). He also worked three years with Alberta's largest transmission owner, AltaLink L.P., in the position of Vice President Business Development. Mr. Barton enjoyed 18 years with TransAlta Corporation, holding various management positions including Director of Financial Operations for their Transmission, Distribution and Retail business. Mr. Barton received his Bachelor's degree from the University of Lethbridge and is a Certified Member of the Society of Management Accountants of Alberta.

Neil Brown Kelly, Non-Executive Director
Mr. Kelly is a 40+ year veteran of the upstream, midstream, and downstream oil and gas industries. He held managerial positions responsible for the operation of both major offshore (Norway) and onshore oil and gas facilities (Nigeria and Indonesia). Prior to his retirement from ExxonMobil he was Managing Director of Ras Laffan LNG Company (RasGas) in the State of Qatar. In this role he oversaw the development of the company and the construction of the LNG plant, and the offshore gas production facilities to provide feedstock to the plant. This multi-billion US dollar project was started up ahead of schedule and on budget. Mr. Kelly also served as a Director of PT Arun LNG Company in Indonesia for three years during a six year assignment in Indonesia, which also saw him direct the production from the giant Arun gas field. Mr. Kelly is a registered Professional Engineer in the Province of British Columbia, Canada and has both BSc and MSc degrees in Mechanical Engineering.

Heinz Richard Hermann Schmitt, Non-Executive Director
Mr. Schmitt holds a B.Sc. in Geological Sciences from the University of Aston in Birmingham, England. Mr. Schmitt has 34 years of diverse international experience in the upstream oil and gas industry with expertise in exploration, exploitation, operations and new ventures. A significant part of his career was spent managing and developing projects in Yemen, culminating in 5 years as Occidental's President and General Manager in that country. He was President and CEO of Africa Oil Corp. from 2006 until 2009. In October 2009, Mr. Schmitt became President  & CEO of Black Marlin Energy with exploration projects in Seychelles, Kenya, Madagascar and Ethiopia. A public listing on the Toronto Venture Exchange was secured in March, 2010 and aggressive exploration programs implemented in all of those jurisdictions. The company was subsequently acquired by Afren PLC in October, 2010 and Mr. Schmitt was retained as CEO of Afren EAX. Mr. Schmitt left Afren EAX on January 31, 2011 and joined the Board of Wentworth Resources on March 17, 2011.

Executive Management

Geoffrey Bury, CA - Managing Director
Mr Bury obtained a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of Alberta in 1984 and was admitted as a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Alberta in 1987. He has extensive oil and gas industry experience and has strong petrochemicals project development and project management skills. Mr Bury is the former Chief Financial Officer of Voyager Energy Limited and former Finance Manager of Qatar Fuel Additives Company, a world-scale methanol and MTBE production facility.

John Dragonetti - Regional Manager, East Africa
Mr Dragonetti has a BA in Education and MA in Management from Michigan State University and has had a successful 37 year career as a senior adviser to oil & gas companies, governments, and business leaders in the Middle East, Africa and North America. Mr Dragonetti was instrumental in obtaining oil & gas exploration and development concessions in Mozambique, United Arab Emirates and Egypt as a former senior executive of three international oil & gas companies.

Salvator Ntomola - Country Manager, Tanzania
Mr. Ntomola holds a BSc in Geology from Makerere University Uganda, and post graduate diploma in Petroleum Geology from Bergen University, Norway. Ntomola is former Director of Exploration and Production and Deputy Managing Director for TPDC. He is also former Director of Investment Facilitation for Tanzanian Investment Centre. Ntomola holds extensive working experience with and personal relationships in the governments and the petroleum sectors of Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, Mozambique and the Comoros.

Mussa Makame - Deputy Country Manager, Tanzania
Mr. Makame holds a BCom in Accounting from the University of Dar Es Salaam and is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) since 2000 and is currently pursuing an MBA from Warwick Business School. He is the former Director of Finance for all Wentworth (formerly Artumas Group Inc.) subsidiaries in Tanzania (2006 to 2008) and has wide ranging experience in accounting, finance and general management with private and international companies in Tanzania including PricewaterhouseCoopers, Coca Cola and Airtel (formerly Celtel) Tanzania.

Eric Bakilana - Head of Legal, Tanzania
Mr. Bakilana holds an LLM (International Finance Law) from Harvard Law School and an LLM (Banking and Finance Law) from the University of London. He is a member of the Middle Temple, Barrister at Law (England and Wales) since 2002 and has experience in finance, tax, regulatory and energy law.

Eric Fore, MBA - Finance, Investor & Public Relations Manager
Mr. Fore has a Masters of Business Administration degree and over 25 years of experience with company development, finance and management. He was formerly M&A advisor to Nimir Petroleum Limited and Chief Financial Officer of Nimir Chemicals Limited, a Middle East-based speciality chemicals manufacturer. He was also co-founder and Non-executive Director of East Africa-focused, Black Marlin Energy Limited (recently acquired by Afren plc).