TORONTO, ONTARIO -- (Marketwire) -- 06/20/12 -- The concerned shareholders ("New Board") of Alberta Oilsands Inc. ("AOS" or the "Company") see multiple routes to accelerate share-price growth for AOS shareholders.
In general terms, the concerned shareholders wish to outline several overriding next steps:
1. Growth Where Size Matters - While many of the companies within the
oilsands fairway with deeper oilsands deposits have been taken-up or
partnered with major North American E & P companies and international E
& P companies, there is an opportunity to aggregate the largest shallow
conventional oilsands pure play in the oilsands basin(s). This play will
be completely unlocked in the near-term, and the optionality value which
will be awarded in the market to the first-mover leader in this area has
the potential to generate extremely meaningful returns for AOS
shareholders over a 12 - 24 month period.
2. Foster Partnerships and Relationships - The proposed new post-June 28
board of AOS intends to achieve Point 1 above, and it is critical that
it be achieved in a non-dilutive fashion such that shareholders retain
maximal upside to the largest shallow oilsands pure play in the basin.
The New Board already has long-term relationships with major
international energy development groups that will allow AOS to fully
monetize and fund an existing and growing asset base.
3. Staged Accretive Financing - The current board and management is
composed largely of individuals with strong backgrounds in engineering.
The New Board has the capital markets experience to structure financing
and transactional opportunities in ways which are, to the greatest
degree possible, the most favourable to the current shareholder base.
Financing options are currently being readied with the relevant groups,
on the assumption that the New Board will be elected on June 28.
4. Turn AOS into a Currency - Net of cash, AOS today trades at roughly 1.5
cents per barrel of contingent oil sands resources. This is in stark
contrast to peers and only because the current management and board of
AOS have totally failed to communicate the value of the Company to the
investor community. The New Board will, with its existing networks in
the Canadian, American, and European investment communities, make it an
immediate priority to highlight the overall undervalued nature and worth
of AOS such that if necessary, its equity can be used as a currency for
acquisitions, if they are accretive, and such that AOS will not itself
become the victim of opportunistic acquisition at deeply discounted
prices.
It is the concerned shareholders' belief that the current board does not have the wherewithal, relationships, or the capacity to bring about higher share prices. This has to be driven by a group of merchant /investment banking-savvy experts with the experience and ability to structure transactions in the context of a publicly traded company with a superior asset base comprising prime oilsands fairway, and cash. The incumbent group of engineers may be highly valuable as employees once the Clearwater plans are approved, but they simply lack the capital markets experience required to understand how to drive share prices higher and how to capitalize on, and optimize all relevant assets within AOS at the same time.
Indeed, at the risk of repeating itself, the New Board believes that the time for value generation is now, not next year as shareholders continue to wait for the Incumbents' one trick pony - the slow, up to now painful, and uncertain Clearwater regulatory approval. Shareholders have waited long enough, especially while there are clear ways to unlock shareholder value immediately, under confident and seasoned management with a diverse experience and skill set that includes finance and capital markets, not just engineering.
Fellow AOS shareholders are urged to read the information circular prepared by the concerned shareholders, and to seize this opportunity and vote the GREEN proxy for the concerned shareholder nominees.
Shareholders who have voted the management proxy and wish to support the concerned shareholders have the right to change their vote by simply executing a GREEN proxy. A later-dated GREEN proxy replaces a previous recorded vote.
Time is of the essence, GREEN proxies must be returned no later than June 25, 2012 at 5:00 P.M. (Calgary Time).
For assistance and ease with voting your GREEN proxy, please contact Phoenix Advisory Partners (toll-free) at 1-800-294-4817 or visit www.saveAOS.com where the GREEN proxy can be easily voted by clicking on the large green "Vote Now" button and simply inputting the Control number on your GREEN proxy.
Contacts:
Phoenix Advisory Partners
Susy Monteiro
Senior Vice President
(647) 351-3085 ext. 222
