Eco Atlantic Oil & Gas acquires JHI Associates and its stake in Canje block

The block is directly adjacent to the prolific Stabroek block where ExxonMobil has discovered in excess of 10 billion barrels of oil. The block is approximately 4800 km², located approximately 180 to 300 km offshore Guyana in water depths ranging between 1700 and 3000 m, and is operated by Esso Exploration & Production Guyana Limited (35%), a subsidiary of ExxonMobil, with the remaining partners including TotalEnergies E&P Guyana B.V. (35%), JHI Associates (BVI) Inc. (17.5%) and Mid-Atlantic Oil & Gas Inc. (12.5%).

Canje is covered with 6100 km² of 3D seismic and holds over three dozen prospects in four proven plays in the Lower Tertiary and Upper Cretaceous confined channels, Lower Cretaceous Carbonate structures and, with recent drilling of Sapote-1 well and Stabroek discoveries, now offers the opportunity of yet deeper horizons.

Eco will acquire JHI's capital balance, which is expected to be a minimum of US$15 million upon completion of the acquisition, currently expected to close in 2Q22.

John Cullen, founder and CEO of JHI, commented:

"This transaction provides JHI's shareholders access to Eco's exciting portfolio of exploration opportunities in the emerging oil basins of Namibia and South Africa, and in Guyana with their Orinduik block, while maintaining their exposure to the Canje Block, where we have been working steadily with our partners to identify the next prospect to drill. It also represents the culmination of a tremendous amount of work from JHI's technical team which, over the last six years, saw two supermajors join the Canje Block, and three wells drilled providing valuable information towards unlocking the potential of the deeper water portions of the Guyana-Suriname Basin. JHI's team has come to work well with Eco's team since they became shareholders last year, and we know that they will continue to be good stewards of the Canje Block as they add it into their impressive and expanding exploration portfolio."

Gil Holzman, co-founder and CEO of Eco Atlantic, commented:

"Eco's ambition is to become the "go-to" small-cap exploration vehicle for investors seeking exposure to high-impact drilling programs in three of the world's most exciting hydrocarbon provinces in Guyana, Namibia and South Africa. This acquisition gets us another step closer to that goal and builds on the Azinam acquisition we announced earlier this year. This transaction adds to Eco's strategic acreage position in Guyana and ensures that there will be a number of drilling catalysts over the next couple of years on Eco's eight offshore blocks. In addition, the enlarged Group will benefit from JHI's current cash position, adding US$15million to Eco's balance sheet, further strengthening the Company's liquidity position. Given Eco's strategic investor base and proven access to the public capital markets, the anticipated addition of JHI's interest in the Canje Block and its working capital, will further augment the enlarged Group cash position for its share of all near term exploration programs on its current blocks including: 2B in South Africa where drilling preparations for a late Q3 spud are underway and the Eco Orinduik Block offshore Guyana to follow, Block 3B/4B in Orange basin South Africa and elsewhere in the current and future portfolio of the enlarged entity. Ahead of our planned drilling campaign on Block 2B offshore South Africa in late Q3 2022, we are also looking to finalise drilling targets in Eco's Orinduik Block, offshore Guyana."

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