Jun 2011 Financial News

Mora Ven Holdings reports $1.4m after-tax loss

Jun 02, 2011

While Mora Ven Holdings Ltd has reported 2010 income of $49 million, its chairman George Nicholas III has said the group made a after-tax loss of $1.4 million. Nicholas, who is also chairman of the Caribbean Airlines Ltd (CAL), said in the chairman’s 2010 annual report that the board has decided to defer payment of a dividend “for the time being.” He stated that revenues for the group, which includes Mora Oil Ventures Ltd (listed on the second tier of the T&T Stock Exchange, Crowne Plaza Hotel and Nicholas Tower, exceeded the 2009 performance by some 40 per cent. He said the $49 million in income converts to an earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITADA), of $17,418,898. “We settled over $11 million in levies, royalties and supplementary petroleum taxes. In addition, I am able to report that our current assets have increased by 23 per cent over the period. “You will appreciate that the local and global economy remained sluggish in 2010, that, coupled with the difficulty the slump in oil prices in the early part of 2010 had an adverse impact on profits.”

East Mora field
Nicholas said the East Mora field off Trinidad’s east coast is proving to be more complex than first thought. “Your company has engaged experts in Trinidad and in Houston to advise and certify the findings at East Mora. They will also interpret the data and then work with the drilling companies to completion. In that regard, we should be arranging for a drilling company to test the find in the near future,” the chairman stated. The Mora oilfield is located in approximately 120 feet of water and is about ten miles east northeast of Pt Galeota, and five miles west northwest of Poui Field. The field was discovered by bpTT in 1982 with the drilling of exploration well Galeota Ridge 3, which tested at a rate of 1,600 barrels of oil per day of light oil. Appraisal wells GR4 and GR6 were drilled between 1985 and 1986 and tested 3,108 bpd and 1,760 bpd of light oil, respectively, the report stated.

Litigation
Regarding Mora Ven Holdings’ litigation proceedings against Dr Krishna Persad, former owner of Mora Oil Ventures Ltd, on 2002 private charges of forgery and larceny, Nicholas said litigation costs continued to accrue, although those costs “tailed off” towards the end of 2010. “The long-running litigation has reached the concluding phase now as the attorneys for both sides prepare their closing submissions,” Nicholas said.

Renewable energy
Nicholas said Mora Ven Holdings has ventured into a new business area, having created Solaris, its new solar energy division. “We had start-up costs, as well as the costs of buying into the business in Barbados as well as the costs of ending certain pre-existing but complex arrangements in Africa. “That was, however, money well spent as the new structure is working to our advantage and our solar products are doing well in Africa. Indeed, as we get further into 2011, I can report that Solaris is the number one thermal water heater supplier by sales in Barbados We see further growth in Barbados, the region and globally in 2011.”

Share ownership
According to the Mora Ven Holdings annual report, George Nicholas has 3,296,134 or 41 per cent of shares in the company. Krishna Persad and Associates Ltd has 1,470,000 or 18 per cent; Allied Hotels Ltd owns 904,693 shares or 11 per cent, Krishna Persad has 718,213 shares or 9 per cent, as of December 31, 2008. The board of directors of Mora Ven Holdings Ltd are: George M Nicholas III, Ashram C Ramnarine (2,000 shares), Arnold Waterman, Wendell de Landro, Kirk La Borde, Keith Scotland. The latter four have no shareholding in the company.


Source:
Trinidad Guardian
Thursday June 2, 2011

http://guardian.co.tt/business-guardian/2011/06/02/mora-ven-holdings-reports-14m-after-tax-loss