Petro Resources Underscores Changes to Management

Petro Resources Corp.

Petro Resources announced today that effective May 22, 2009, Mr. Gary C. Evans has joined the Company as Chairman of the Board. Additionally, Mr. Ronald D. Ormand has also joined the Company as Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and a member of the Board of Directors.

Mr. Evans previously founded and served as the Chairman and CEO of Magnum Hunter Resources, Inc., a NYSE listed company, for twenty years before selling Magnum Hunter to Cimarex Energy in a $2.2 billion transaction in June 2005. During Mr. Evans' tenure as the CEO, the common shareholders of Magnum Hunter averaged an annual rate return on their investment of approximately 37%. After the sale of Magnum Hunter, Mr. Evans formed GreenHunter Energy, Inc. (NYSE Amex), a renewable energy company focused on biodiesel, wind and biomass power, and currently serves as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. Additionally, Mr. Evans serves as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Gruy Petroleum Management LLC, Inc., a privately held oil and gas operating company. Mr. Evans serves as an Individual Trustee of TEL Offshore Trust, a NASDAQ listed oil and gas trust, and is Lead Director for Novavax Inc., a NASDAQ listed vaccine pharmaceutical company. Mr. Evans also serves on the Board of the Maguire Energy Institute at Southern Methodist University. Mr. Evans was recognized by Ernst and Young as the Southwest Area 2004 Entrepreneur of the Year for the Energy Sector and was subsequently inducted into the World Hall of Fame for Ernst & Young Entrepreneurs.

Mr. Ormand has over twenty five years of investment and commercial banking experience in the energy industry. Most recently, Mr. Ormand served as Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer for Gruy Petroleum Management LLC, Inc. and as President of Perugia Advisors, Inc., a financial advisory and private investment firm focused on the energy industry. Mr. Ormand previously served as President, Chief Financial Officer and member of the Board of Directors of Tremisis Energy Acquisition II, Corp., ("Tremisis II") a special purpose acquisition company focused on energy and environmental projects until the sale of a majority interest in Tremisis II to a Korean Investment group in March 2009. Mr. Ormand remains as a member of the Board of Directors of Tremisis II. From 2005 to 2007, he served as Managing Director and Head of the North American Oil and Gas Investment Banking group at WestLB AG. From 1988 until December 2004, Mr. Ormand was with CIBC World Markets and Oppenheimer & Co., and served as Managing Director and Head of CIBC World Markets' U.S. Oil and Gas Investment Banking Group. Mr. Ormand received his B.A. in Economics in 1980 and his M.B.A. in Finance and Accounting in 1982 from the University of California Los Angeles, and studied Economics at Cambridge University, England in 1979.

Effective with the appointment of Mr. Evans, Mr. Wayne P. Hall has resigned as Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer but will remain with the Company in the capacity of Vice Chairman of the Board. Mr. Donald L. Kirkendall will continue to serve as President of the Company but has resigned as a Board member.

Mr. Hall commented, "We are looking forward to the new leadership from Gary and Ron in our mutual goal of changing the direction of the Company to more of an oil and gas operator with access to capital markets. The Company plans to focus on acquisitions, low risk development drilling, and new projects exhibiting repeatable success opportunities. Given Gary's past experience and success in building Magnum Hunter Resources, we believe that Gary will provide the platform, leadership, industry contacts, and catalyst for growth in this challenging environment."

Mr. Evans commented, "I am very excited about the opportunity to be a part of the Company as we believe this existing platform provides an excellent base from which to grow and participate in the growth anticipated in the energy industry. We believe that there will be extraordinary investment and acquisition opportunities in the oil and gas industry over the next three to five years and that this Company provides the base from which to participate in those new opportunities. I have not witnessed such attractive investment opportunities in the oil and gas sector since the mid 1980s."

He continued, "We intend to bring similar disciplines that were utilized so successfully at Magnum Hunter, including low finding and development costs, low operating costs and corporate overhead, in order to generate superior investment returns to our shareholders. We plan to significantly expand the Company's asset base through the opportunistic acquisition and operation of producing properties with additional low risk drilling and development drilling opportunities. In the near term, we will focus on acquisitions and development of predominately oil-based properties as we believe the current fundamentals of oil are currently superior to natural gas. In addition, we plan to acquire or develop oil and gas reserves in one or more unconventional areas as we believe that these types of projects can present superior overall investment return opportunities to shareholders. We are looking forward to this new challenge and the opportunity of working with the Board of Directors and management team in building this Company into a premier industry producer."
 


Most Popular Articles